Last weekend, Semana news magazine revealed that some agents at the Administrative Security Department (DAS for its Spanish initials), Colombia's “secret police,” had been illegally wire tapping politicians, journalists, magistrates, intellectuals, and —this time— even government officials close to President Álvaro Uribe, including his private and legal secretaries, and an official from his personal security staff. Even worse, according to the magazine, some of these agents allegedly had been “selling to the highest bidder,” namely guerrillas, paramilitaries or drug traffickers, the information obtained with the illegal phone bugging. Most of the recordings, the magazine says, were destroyed [es] between January 19-21. The story was echoed [es] early Saturday by other media as the magazine was hitting the stores. On Sunday, agents from the Technical Investigation Corps (CTI for its Spanish initials) of the Attorney General's office raided DAS headquarters, causing a conflict [es] between both institutions. Later, the first high-rank DAS official was fired. Supreme Court issued a communiqué [es] demanding results from the Attorney General. Opposition accused the government for the tappings. A case of e-mail hacking has been denounced [es]. President Uribe denied it, claimed he is also a “victim,” and blamed it on a “mafia gang inside” the DAS. Defense Minister Juan Manuel Santos said he wanted the intelligence agency to be disbanded, but the government itself disagreed [es] with him. Wire tappings (or ‘chuzadas’ as they are known colloquially in Colombian Spanish) are not new in President Uribe's administration. In May 2007, the same magazine published recordings of paramilitary bosses in jail talking about committing crimes, and later more illegal wire tappings, by an elite police intelligence unit, were learned. As a consequence, Uribe dismissed 14 police generals, making Gen. Óscar Naranjo the new (and current) national police director. In late 2008, leftist senator (and former M-19 guerilla fighter) Gustavo Petro denounced he and his party were being ‘shadowed’ by people from DAS since August and published two internal memoranda issued by a DAS section chief. Its director and the mid-rank official who ordered the ‘followings’ resigned. In both cases, the government denied any involvement. Both Sentido Común and Charly write about Uribe's words on the scandal. Sentido Común [es] worries about our national security: De corroborarse la reiterada tesis de Uribe sobre la existencia de una mafia al interior de su gobierno, se estaría evidenciando la impotencia gubernamental para controlar cabalmente los cuerpos secretos del Estado, situación que estaría exponiendo al país a un estado de indefensión en materia de seguridad en diferentes flancos y con la gravedad que implica la convivencia con organizaciones mafiosas, enquistadas dentro del propio Gobierno. Meanwhile, Charly [es] seems quite distrustful of the government and asks who is behind all this: No me como el cuento que funcionarios de mandos medios del DAS actúen solos y que el Gobierno sea víctima de un complot. Estamos ante escándalos de mayores proporciones que, sumado al caso de Noguera y al de la Dipol (que tumbó a varios generales) evidencian una crisis de la democracia, un atentado contra el pensamiento y la libre opinión en Colombia. Valentina Díaz makes some questions [es] at Realidades Colombianas: La presidencia de la república niega, el Director del Das hace lo mismo. Ninguno de los mandos ni jefes del servicio secreto a disposición del Presidente de la República ha ordenado escuchar a un grupo selecto de personas no adeptas a su gobierno. Pregunta: ¿Acaso, al interior del Das cada cual hace lo que se le viene en gana? ¿Se trata de gente desbocada y sin control superior? “Según información que me han dado, hay conversaciones que están ahí y eso es muy grave”, dice el jefe del Das. En otras palabras, muchos saben de la intercepciones telefónicas, son dominio público, solo lo ignoran el presidente y el Jefe. And Carmen Posada mocks President Uribe's “paranoia” [es]: De acuerdo con Orwell, el Gran Hermano nos vigila todo el tiempo. Ya no podemos ni siquiera tirarnos un pedito sin que Uribe esté enterado, los que usamos la web ya no podremos siquiera mandarle un mensajito calentón al novio porque este degenerado va a pensar que estamos haciendo terrorismo virtual en mensajes cifrados. No le creo ni media palabra a Uribe en el tema de las chuzadas de los teléfonos, no lecreo que no haya dado la orden aunque no exista una sola prueba de ello y no le creo porque el único interesado en seguir los pasos de la oposición es él que como buen estratega delirante es, además, paranoico.