Two hours ago the news every single French People was waiting for since more than 6 years finally came!... It is still hard to believe as it came out from nowhere... Ingrid Betancourt is finally free from her kidnappers after living hell in the Colombian Jungle.
Ingrid is a beautiful and successful Franco Colombian who decided to run for Presidency in Colombia in 2002. On the path to victory she was cowardly abducted on February 23rd 2002 by the FARCS , a rebellious guerilla and terrorist Marxist organisation.
Immediately all over France a campaign of support and a fight for her liberation started. Since, it didn't passed one day that the French People didn't thought about her or weren't reminded of her captivity. Posters were put all over the Balconies in all major cities, she was made "Citizen of Honor" of the Cities of Paris, Bordeaux, Lyon, Marseilles, Nice, Cannes, and many others...
Immediately all over France a campaign of support and a fight for her liberation started. Since, it didn't passed one day that the French People didn't thought about her or weren't reminded of her captivity. Posters were put all over the Balconies in all major cities, she was made "Citizen of Honor" of the Cities of Paris, Bordeaux, Lyon, Marseilles, Nice, Cannes, and many others...
Every where, in every single public place we could see her picture : We could not forget her, people had to keep fighting and negotiating for her liberation... and keep pressure on the French Government to make sure of its involvement .
When he was elected President last year, Nicolas Sarkozy said he will do everything he could to succeed in the negotiation to bring her to freedom and give her back to her family.Many attempts where made, some almost succeeded, but at the end, all failed... Then came out this picture in February 2008, showing her extremely diminished and sick...
Sarkozy immediately sent a medical plane from the French Government to the Colombian jungle in another attempt to free her. Unfortunately at the same time the President Uribe and the Colombian army decided to raid the zone where the rebels were hiding and killed the main Chief negotiator... The deal was off and the plane came back to Paris without her.
During all those years, her Family and the French people never gave up their hope to see her alive and free again one day. French politician showed their full support behind the support committee, her daughter, her son, her mother, her sister, her husband and her ex-husband who was also immediately extremely active for her liberation.
The mobilisation was general...
Her Daughter and her ex-husband here above, her Mother and Sister with her Son, Daughter and French politicians here below
Even during sessions at the French Parlement, Senators and Deputies standing up for her freedom
Elected Mayors and Congresmen and women...
Tonight we get what we wanted and what she deserved ! She is free....
Sarkozy immediately sent a medical plane from the French Government to the Colombian jungle in another attempt to free her. Unfortunately at the same time the President Uribe and the Colombian army decided to raid the zone where the rebels were hiding and killed the main Chief negotiator... The deal was off and the plane came back to Paris without her. During all those years, her Family and the French people never gave up their hope to see her alive and free again one day. French politician showed their full support behind the support committee, her daughter, her son, her mother, her sister, her husband and her ex-husband who was also immediately extremely active for her liberation. The mobilisation was general... Her Daughter and her ex-husband here above, her Mother and Sister with her Son, Daughter and French politicians here below Even during sessions at the French Parlement, Senators and Deputies standing up for her freedom Elected Mayors and Congresmen and women... Tonight we get what we wanted and what she deserved ! She is free.... LIBRE !
She will now have a chance to get medical attention, and hopefully she will be safe, even though now diagnostic are not very optimistic...
Tonight we all have a thought for her whole family as well, in Paris, her daughter Melanie, her son Lorenzo, her husband Juan Carlos, her sister Astrid, her Mother Yolanda, her ex-husband Fabrice and all her friends.
Tonight Paris is celebrating!...
Tonight France is celebrating!....
This poster we saw so many time during 6 years finally came to reality
5 comments:
This is a very nice tribute to Betancourt, Phillippe. Thanks.
Philippe
Great post about a great event.
I have to disagree with the following part of your post, however, because I do not think there was a deal that would have caused FARC to put her on that plane, even if there had been no military action in area.
"Sarkozy immediately sent a medical plane from the French Government to the Colombian jungle in another attempt to free her. Unfortunately at the same time the President Uribe and the Colombian army decided to raid the zone where the rebels were hiding and killed the main Chief negotiator... The deal was off and the plane came back to Paris without her."
Apart from general knowledge, I think the captured emails make it very clear that she would never have been released simply on humanitarian grounds.
But, again, great post on a great day.
David, maybe I didn't expressed it right... What everyone "believe" or "think" isn't really relevant only the facts are. I meant that Sarkozy immediatly sent a Medical plane with a medical team and a negociators team to Guyana with some "demands" and the hope to obtain a deal for her liberation, and that unfortunatly others events took place at the same time, seemed to have interfered, and at the end no deal was done... Here an excert from an article (in French...) :
" Selon l'Elysée, "des informations concernant l'état de santé d'Ingrid Betancourt ainsi que des déclarations faisant état de possibles tractations à propos de sa libération ont amené le président de la République à décider, à titre de précaution et pour qu'elle puisse recevoir aussitôt des soins appropriés et être acheminée au plus vite vers un centre hospitalier si elle était libérée, de pré-positionner un avion médicalisé en Guyane, prêt à intervenir à tout moment".
Or in English :(France sends plane to wait for Ingrid Betancourt
By John Lichfield in Paris
Monday, 31 March 2008)
"A French presidential jet, carrying a medical team and emergency medical equipment, was waiting on a runway in French Guyana last night for the possible release of the Franco-Colombian jungle hostage, Ingrid Betancourt.
Renewed efforts are under way to persuade the left-wing Farc guerrillas to release the 46 years old former Colombian presidential candidate, who is said to be seriously ill.
Although French and Colombian authorities declined to say whether a release was imminent after six years in captivity, her international support committee said that the dispatch of President Nicolas Sarkozy’s Falcon 900 executive jet was a hopeful sign.
“Things are pointing in the right direction,” said Olivier Roubi, vice-president of the international pressure group for Mme Betancourt’s release. “We can only hope that negotiations are in progress to secure her liberation.”
Fears for Mme Betancourt’s life have grown in recent days with reports from the Farc’s jugle hideouts that she is seriously ill, suffering from malnutrition and hepatitis-B.
Last week, the Colombian government offered prisoner amnesties in exchange for hostages and said France could take freed Farc prisoners as part of a deal. "
I do not write about my opinion, but just relate to and re-transcript facts. We will surely never know if a deal could have been possible or not since it never happened, due to the events we know.
What wonderful news! Thank you for posting this as I did not see this in the papers. I do hope she can recover fully from whatever illness she may have but it is impossible to recover the years that were lost.
Phil
This is a wonderful blog about Betancourt.
I saw her last night on Larry King and it was an amazing interview..she is an amazing woman
Barbara
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