Hot Spot DXing: Warnings of War in Latin America ?

War Drums in Latin America
Few world leaders rattle a saber as flamboyantly as Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez does. On Sunday, in a piece of vintage Chavez theater, he ordered thousands of troops and tanks to the border with Colombia after that country's military had ventured a mile into Ecuador on Saturday to kill Raul Reyes, a top commander of Colombia's FARC guerrillas. The left-wing Chavez called conservative Colombian President Alvaro Uribe a "criminal" and a "lapdog of the U.S. empire," warning ominously that "this could be the start of a war in South America."
(Continued story at Time: http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1719158,00.html?xid=feed-cnn-world

Colombia calls for Chavez charges
Colombian President Alvaro Uribe says he will ask the International Criminal Court to bring charges against President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela. Mr Uribe said he would ask the Hague court to bring charges of "financing genocide". Colombia accuses Venezuela of backing Farc rebels. Farc - the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia - has been fighting for more than four decades with the declared aim of fairer wealth distribution in Colombia. Additional story and video link from BBC News: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7277313.stm

Fidel Castro wades into South American fray
Tuesday, March 4, 2008; 8:47 AM
HAVANA (Reuters) - Former Cuban President Fidel Castro waded into the growing dispute between Ecuador, Colombia and Venezuela on Tuesday, backing Ecuador but aiming his fire mainly at arch-enemy the United States. Cuban allies Ecuador and Venezuela broke diplomatic ties with Colombia after its forces killed a rebel inside Ecuador in a raid that sparked troop deployments and warnings of war.
Reuters coverage: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/04/AR2008030400752.html

Uribe to denounce Chavez in court in Andes crisis
By Patrick Markey
BOGOTA (Reuters) - Colombian President Alvaro Uribe said on Tuesday he would denounce Venezuela's Hugo Chavez in international court in a growing Andean dispute after Venezuela and Ecuador cut diplomatic ties with Bogota and ordered troops to their neighbor's frontier.
Reuters coverage: http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSN0227633020080304

Colombia: Documents Show Growing Relations Between Ecuador's Government and Rebels
BOGOTA, Colombia — Colombia's police chief said Monday that documents recovered from a slain rebel leader's computer reveal financial ties between Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and Colombia's largest guerrilla group, including a recent message that mentions US$300 million in Venezuelan support for the rebels.
FOX News: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,334673,00.html

Ecuador Follows Chavez in Deploying Troops to Colombian Border
FOX News with story and related video: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,334409,00.html

Cocaine lab, FARC radio network and base destroyed

A cocaine lab, a radio network and a base allegedly belonging to the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) were destroyed in central Colombia, officials said Thursday (Feb 21, Ed). The Colombian Air Force (FAC) said it had bombed an area in La Uribe, in Meta province, following an investigation into the alleged rebel radio "Resistance Voice". "The clandestine radio network was in a building with transmission equipment, antennas and a security base, which were completely destroyed," the FAC said, adding that a drug lab was also found there.

FARC, Colombia’s largest rebel group, has been fighting against the Colombian government for almost half a century. Colombian President Alvaro Uribe has reiterated his intention to defeat FARC by military means, while Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has been trying to promote a dialogue between Uribe’s government and the rebels to reach a peace treaty in Colombia. [Colombian newspaper El Tiempo reported on Feb 21 that the "La Voz de la Resistencia" FM radio station was based along the upper reaches of the Guape river in La Uribe municipality. According to officials, it was "the main source of terrorist broadcasts."]. (Xinhua news agency website, Beijing, Feb 21 by BBC Monitoring, via Sennitt, via DXplorer/DX Window 345 via A Petersen)

Considering Venezuela's relations with Cuba, there may be news and updates from Radio Havana Cuba.
Radio Havana Cuba via Havana, Cuba
All times UTC kHz

English
0100-0200 6000 6180
0200-0300 6000 6180
0300-0400 6000 6180
0400-0500 6000 6180
0500-0600 6000 6060 6180 9550 11760
0600-0700 6000 6060 6180 9550 11760
2030-2100 9505 11760
2100-2130 9505 11760
2300-0000 9505 9550
(Gayle Van Horn/Monitoring Times SW Guide)

French
0000-0100 9550
0130-0200 9550
2000-2030 9505 11760
2130-2200 9505 11760
2200-2230 5965 9505
2300-2330 5965

Spanish
new frequency observed 11680 at 0000 // 5965, 6060, 9600, 13760

B07 schedules

0000-0100 5965 6000 6060 6140 9600 11760 11875 13760
0100-0200 5965 6060 6140 9600 11760 11875 13760
0200-0300 5965 6060 6140 9600 11760 11875
0300-0400 5965 6060 6140 9600 11760 11875
0400-0500 5965 6060 6140 9600 11760 11875
1100-1200 6000 6180 9550 9600 11760 11805 12000 13760
1200-1300 6000 6180 9550 9600 11760 11805 12000 13760
1300-1400 5000 9550 11760 11805 12000 13680 15370
1400-1500 9550 11760 11805 12000 13680 13760 15370
2100-2200 9550 11750 11800 13760
2200-2300 9550 11750 11800 13760

Portuguese
2000-2030 11750 11800
2200-2230 17705
2300-2330 13760 17705
2330-0000 13760

Quecha
0000-0030 17705
(DX Mix News # 505 via Alokesh Gupta

Radio Rebelde via Havana, Cuba
Spanish
Spanish
24 hours on 5025
0700-0900 11760
1100-1400 6140 9505 9600
1600-1900 15370 17735
1700-1900 11665 15570
(WRTVH)

Radio Nacional de Venezuela - Antena Internacional (via Havana, Cuba relay)
Spanish
freqs & times subject to variations
1000-1200 6180
1200-1300 11705
1400-1800 11670, 11875m 13750, 17750
2000-2100 11705
2200-2300 11670
2300-0000 13680, 15250
(WRTVH)

Venezuela
Radio Amazonas (via Puerto Ayacucho) Spanish on 4940; 1000 - 0400 UTC

(WRTH)

Recent shortwave logging observations:

Colombia
Marfil Estéreo (via Lomalinda) Spanish on 5910, 6010;0600 UTC (DX Window 344)
5910, Marfil Estereo, Lomalinda, 0448-0930, Jan 22, Feb 02 and 03, Latinamerican songs, Spanish ID: "Ahora en Marfil Estereo, sólo éxitos", brief religious talk, complete ID: "estas sintonizando las nuevas ondas de paz: Marfil Estereo, HKI79 FM", 44444. ((D'Angelo, Méndez and Slaen/DX Window 343)

6009.9, La Voz de tu Conciencia, Puerto LLeras, 0545, Jan 20, long talk in Spanish, LSB mode best, SINPO24432. (Slaen/DX Window 343)

6035 La Voz del Guaviare 29/2 0140. songs, nice id, good. (Bernardini, IT/NASWA Flashsheet #318)

6035 La Voz del Guaviare, 2-29, 0213, SP. ID, folk vocals, some Andean (Paszkiewicz-WI/NASWA Flashsheet #318)

5910, Marfil Estereo, Lomalinda, 0210 and 0930, Feb 26 and 29, songs and music, "En su dial, Marfil Stereo", 33333, QRM 5905. (Bernardini and Cruz/DX Window 345)

6009.96v, La Voz de tu Conciencia (pres.), Lomalinda, 0150, Feb 20, talks, under another station, poor. (Bernardini/DX Window 345)

6035, La Voz del Guaviare, San José del Guaviare, 0010-0140, Feb 20, 22 and 29, Spanish talk, ID's, Colombian pop songs, 0025 QRM from Bhutan, until then 35333. (Bernardini and Petersen/DX Window 345)

Cuba
5025, R Rebelde, Bauta, 1010-fade out 1230, Feb 09, "Haciendo Radio" with news, chat and music. SINPO 35444. (Gonçalves/DX Window 344)

6060 Radio Nacional de Venezuela, 1105-1110, Feb 27. YL in English, sounded like a commentary about Colombia, very poor, under a much stronger China/Sichuan PBS-2. (Howard-CA/NASWA Flashsheet #318)

Ecuador
11960, HCJB, La Voz de los Andes, 1145-1201, Feb 16, Programme "Galápagos" which is broadcast Sa at this hour, "Galápagos, las últimas islas encantadas, mavarilla viviente de la creación de Dios a las que HCJB dedica este programa", "Laguna El Junco, en la Isla de San Cristóbal" about species which live on this island, "En el próximo programa, nuevos e inquietantes problemas sobre este privilegiado lugar del planeta". At 1200 end of programme and ID: "Seis horas, esta es HCJB, La Voz de los Andes."
SINPO 33333. (Méndez/DX Window 344)

For additional military coverage, consult our sister blog Milcom Monitoring Post at http://mt-milcom.blogspot.com/ for Hot Spot DXing: Colombia-Ecuador - Venezuela