Olive Moore's blog

The bill board showed a picture of a handsome man his late twenties in army helmet and fatigues, with war paint on his face, looking alert and earnest. It says “Even though I don’t know you I’d give up my life for you” and below that ‘Heroes do exist in Colombia’. This is part of a slick advertisement campaign being run by the Colombian military. I muse how the ‘winning hearts and minds’ strategy is not confined to Iraq alone.

The TV showed pictures of white palmtree lined beaches, scenic mountains and sophisticated, attractive people enjoying good food and wine – the standard tourism advertisement you would see in any country. The was followed by the strapline and voice over -    “Colombia – the only risk is wanting to stay”.

At first I thought I had mis-heard, for surely that level of insensitivity and manipulation would not be so publically presented?

As Eduardo talked on, though we were on the 15th floor, I could hear still hear from outside the slogans   and shouts of the protesters. Bus drivers had launched a strike in the city that day,   to protest against new regulations being brought in by the Government, and were now demonstrating in the city center. Listening to Eduardo, I wondered vaguely why people were not protesting in the same way every day at the hundreds murders and endless human rights abuses that were carried out by guerilla, paramilitary, and military forces each year in Colombia.