"No Mas Muertes!" "No Al Sequestro!"
After a week here in Colombia´s capital, I was almost beginning to think that this was a normal country. It's a fair bet that the first words most people associate with Colombia are kidnapping or cocaine. Those were certainly the two first reactions I got when I told people I was coming here, generally preceded or followed by a polite nquiry as to my sanity. After a week here in Bogota, such reactions appeared laughable. Surely this urbane, cosmopolitan, modern city populated by hospitable, friendly, and fun-loving people couldn´t be the capital of a nation at war with itself? All that changed for me today.
After a week here in Colombia´s capital, I was almost beginning to think that this was a normal country. It's a fair bet that the first words most people associate with Colombia are kidnapping or cocaine. Those were certainly the two first reactions I got when I told people I was coming here, generally preceded or followed by a polite nquiry as to my sanity. After a week here in Bogota, such reactions appeared laughable. Surely this urbane, cosmopolitan, modern city populated by hospitable, friendly, and fun-loving people couldn´t be the capital of a nation at war with itself? All that changed for me today.
According to most reports I´ve read this evening, between three and four million people piled onto the streets of Colombia´s four largest cities today, in an almost spontaneous protest for peace. In Bogota alone, over a million people joined together to demand an end to the forty year civil war, an end to kidnapping for political ends, and an end to the mindless killing by the leftist guerillas of the FARC, and ELN, the right wing paramilitaries of the AUC, and the state´s own security forces. Hundreds of thousands of ordinary Bogatanos, many dressed in white, brandished placards, banners or simple white handkerchiefs, and blew whistles, banged drums, and sang songs.
In his much acclaimed reportage of the 1990 hostage crisis instigated by infamous narco-tycoon Pablo Escobar, Colombian Nobel Laureate for Literature Gabriel Garcia Marquez wrote "News of a kidnapping, no matter how painful, is not as irremediable as news of a murder". That may be so, but now, in 2007, the country´s most famous son is apparently out of step with the majority of Colombian opinion, which has tired of the ongoing brutality. Today they spoke up and said "no mas". "No more".
It was a quite amazing sight, even more incredible given its spontaneity. President Alvaro Uribe, whose controversial military and political assault on the guerillas has had such a positive impact on safety and security in Colombia in the last five years, called the rally yesterday in response to the announcement by FARC earlier this week that 11 Cali politicians captured in 2002 had recently died. The President claims the rebels murdered the men in cold blood; FARC maintain the hostages were killed in the crossfire when government forces attacked the remote jungle camp where they were held. Uribe himself led the protests in Bogota, though I didn´t see himself myself. In a slightly absurd touch, the protest initially seemed to subside around 40 minutes after it had begun at 12 noon, only to restart in earnest an hour and a half later. Trust the Colombians to break for lunch.
A few hours later and the sound and the fury has subsided. Once again, Bogota is quiet - no, not quiet, a city of 8.5 million people addicted to dancing, drinking and partying could never be quiet - but there is no sign of the momentous events of earlier. Once again this is the eminently normal capital of an eminently normal nation. In keeping with this trend I too returned to (relative!) normality, and after another intensive afternoon of Spanish class, this evening booked flights for two weekends away from Bogota. I happened to learn earlier today that in Colombia it is Tuesday, not Friday, the 13th that is considered unlucky - the Freddy Krueger films were translated here as "Martes 13th" not "Viernes 13th". This is just as well, for next Friday, the 13th, I fly to Cartagena de Indias on the Caribbean coast. Lonely Planet describes it variously as "a fairy tale city of romance, legends, and sheer beauty", and "the most spectacular colonial city on the continent". The following Thursday, on the eve of Independence Day, I´ll fly to the party capital of Colombia, Cali, from where I´ll head back by bus through the spectacular Andean scenery of the coffee country.
Perhaps one day it will be the export of that cash crop, rather than cocaine, for which Colombia will be known; perhaps one day it will be Cartagena and Cali rather than kidnapping and chaos that are the first reactions when travellers speak of this country. Perhaps one day the anniversary of July 5th and the declaration of "no mas" will be celebrated with as much fervour as the Bolivarian Revolution. As I write now the radio plays D-Ream´s "Things Can Only Get Better". The last time I heard that song a suave young leader with a winning smile and a message of optimism was striding to the fore.
Alvaro Uribe better hope he does more for his country than Tony Blair did for his.
In his much acclaimed reportage of the 1990 hostage crisis instigated by infamous narco-tycoon Pablo Escobar, Colombian Nobel Laureate for Literature Gabriel Garcia Marquez wrote "News of a kidnapping, no matter how painful, is not as irremediable as news of a murder". That may be so, but now, in 2007, the country´s most famous son is apparently out of step with the majority of Colombian opinion, which has tired of the ongoing brutality. Today they spoke up and said "no mas". "No more".
It was a quite amazing sight, even more incredible given its spontaneity. President Alvaro Uribe, whose controversial military and political assault on the guerillas has had such a positive impact on safety and security in Colombia in the last five years, called the rally yesterday in response to the announcement by FARC earlier this week that 11 Cali politicians captured in 2002 had recently died. The President claims the rebels murdered the men in cold blood; FARC maintain the hostages were killed in the crossfire when government forces attacked the remote jungle camp where they were held. Uribe himself led the protests in Bogota, though I didn´t see himself myself. In a slightly absurd touch, the protest initially seemed to subside around 40 minutes after it had begun at 12 noon, only to restart in earnest an hour and a half later. Trust the Colombians to break for lunch.
A few hours later and the sound and the fury has subsided. Once again, Bogota is quiet - no, not quiet, a city of 8.5 million people addicted to dancing, drinking and partying could never be quiet - but there is no sign of the momentous events of earlier. Once again this is the eminently normal capital of an eminently normal nation. In keeping with this trend I too returned to (relative!) normality, and after another intensive afternoon of Spanish class, this evening booked flights for two weekends away from Bogota. I happened to learn earlier today that in Colombia it is Tuesday, not Friday, the 13th that is considered unlucky - the Freddy Krueger films were translated here as "Martes 13th" not "Viernes 13th". This is just as well, for next Friday, the 13th, I fly to Cartagena de Indias on the Caribbean coast. Lonely Planet describes it variously as "a fairy tale city of romance, legends, and sheer beauty", and "the most spectacular colonial city on the continent". The following Thursday, on the eve of Independence Day, I´ll fly to the party capital of Colombia, Cali, from where I´ll head back by bus through the spectacular Andean scenery of the coffee country.
Perhaps one day it will be the export of that cash crop, rather than cocaine, for which Colombia will be known; perhaps one day it will be Cartagena and Cali rather than kidnapping and chaos that are the first reactions when travellers speak of this country. Perhaps one day the anniversary of July 5th and the declaration of "no mas" will be celebrated with as much fervour as the Bolivarian Revolution. As I write now the radio plays D-Ream´s "Things Can Only Get Better". The last time I heard that song a suave young leader with a winning smile and a message of optimism was striding to the fore.
Alvaro Uribe better hope he does more for his country than Tony Blair did for his.
