journalist and author
John Otis is a Colombia-based journalist and the author of Law of the Jungle: The Hunt for Colombian Guerrillas, American Hostages, and Buried Treasure. He is a former South America Bureau Chief for the Houston Chronicle.
Now disarmed, what will Colombia's FARC rebels do next? During 52 years of armed conflict in Colombia, some 222,000 people were killed and five million civilians were forced from their homes. Last week, last year’s peace treaty was completed and FARC leader Rodrigo Londoño, also known as Timochenko, addressed a crowd, proclaiming, "Farewell to arms, farewell to war, welcome to peace." FARC rebels wave flags of peace during the final act of abandonment of arms in Mesetas, Colombia, June 27,2017 Photo by Jaime Saldarriaga/Reuters Now, 7000 former rebels have to figure out what to do next. They include people recruited as teenagers, "with few skills beyond firing Kalashnikovs and patching up the wounded." That’s according to John Otis, who's reported for Bloomberg and NPR . He's author of Law of the Jungle: The Hunt for Colombian Guerrillas, American Hostages and Buried Treasure .
Subterranean Cocaine Trafficking Today's Los Angeles Times reports that a routine patrol by the Colombian coast guard revealed a mini-shipyard in a forest of mangroves. Two 55-foot fiberglass submarines were under construction, one ready for launch and the other 70% complete. Each was powered with 350-horsepower diesel engines and capable of transporting three to five tons of cocaine to the US. In August, the Houston Chronicle reported a submarine-like vessel with 5.5 tons of cocaine worth $352 million. John Otis wrote the story.
As sidewalk gardens grow on Skid Row, homeless residents lose a sidewalk In a city with tens of thousands of people living on its streets, sidewalk space can be a hot commodity. Businesses want to keep the sidewalk clear for customers, but the city’s housing crisis means that for some people, the sidewalk is home. Some property owners have reportedly used sprinklers or private security guards to make sure no one sets up camp outside their doors. And in recent months, people living on the streets have noticed a new tactic – business owners effectively occupying a portion of the sidewalk themselves.
Can LA County fix its voting issues before November? Election Day is less than five weeks away. Maybe voting will go off without a hitch. But over the past 10 years, elections in Los Angeles County have been marred by problems that have led to a lot of voter confusion at the polls. In the first of a two part series, KCRW’s Saul Gonzalez looks at recent breakdowns in L.A. County’s elections, and how election officials plan to solve them with a massive election modernization program.