Colombian President Álvaro Uribe Thursday announced that intelligence
agency DAS is no longer allowed to intercept any phone conversation
without Police authorization.
In a speech, broadcast live on Colombian media, the President for the first time spoke out about the scandal that’s kept Colombia busy since Sunday, when weekly Semana published testimonies of DAS officials admitting wiretapping Supreme Court magistrates, opposition politicians and critical media bosses.
Uribe said that the DAS no longer is allowed to wiretap suspects without being authorized to do so by the National Police.
“The Police will have to verify that the request meets all the legal requirements before making the interception,” Uribe said.
He added that the investigations using the interception of phonecalls continue and that the DAS communication centers continue to be operative, but that the directors of DAS and National Police immediately would proceed with the transistion of authority.
The Police — in the past also accused of illegally intercepting phonecalls — has made every effort to avoid illegal wiretapping, the President stressed.