"First they came for the Communists, and I did not speak out because I wasn'ta Communist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out because I wasn'ta Jew.
Then they came for the Catholics, and I did not speak out because I was not Catholic.
Finally they came for me, and then there was nobody left to defend. " Brecht Beltor
few happy moments as the Colombian population had the afternoon when the news revealed the facts that both domestic and foreign, had wanted to hear long time ago. On 2 July, a wish fulfilled and filled a latent hope in most of the people of Colombia. Operation Jaque, the rescue of 15 hostages publicized political and media coverage, planted the belief in the country, the problem of the captives, victims of war, began to be solved.
However, what in military terms was a plausible achievement in social issues was a major set-back, whose main problem was the look flat and the population's daily violations of the freedom of those found in the jungle, in the hands of guerrillas or paramilitaries, or the cities, in the hands of common criminals.
The 'pompous celebration' was paid for propaganda purposes and, although seldom mentioned today on such an act, the hangover remains, for in the same way that Ingrid Betancourt emerged from the jungle, vanished from people a sense of sympathy for acts against humanity, especially kidnapping.
Gone, again, the marches, the cries of peace and initiatives coming from civil society and today, as there are no icons, the fight against kidnapping is the last box on the agenda of the Colombians, pending a poignant television message that wakes them proud patriotism abounds in commercials, but scarce in daily life.
But indifference is not new in a country where violence, pain and social inequality have been present for hundreds of years. Currently, the majority of Colombians are insensitive to the reality of others, as the daily dose of bad news brought to their lives a so-called custom, which eats into the solidarity and chooses to downplay the facts, as such, would scandals starring in any other nation.
On the back of a few lies the weight of millions, but their voices are not enough to get great results. Yet others, who prefer to take the blind eye, just remember their ethical responsibilities as Colombians, on July 20 and May 7 and the 363 remaining days of the year spend trying to ignore the problems that explode in their faces.
When this criticism is obvious, people will award the blame on the violent and, although they have, they also have them do nothing to solve the problem. But What citizens can do without political power? Skeptics wonder. The answer lies in the demonstrations that took a clean sweep the streets to take action and demand issue, once and for all, the freedom of each hostage, both in nature and simple extortion.
A common statement released after the implementation of these marches, was that the massive expression of Colombians, had brokered to put pressure on the FARC. A compelling case is that of 'Prof' Moncayo, who after a long way in chains, that the insurgent group managed to free her son. Moncayo is a role model for all inhabitants of this country, because despite having her son back, said that will not stop and will walk with his chains behind him captive until the last returns from the jungle.
Even with cases like this, it is fanciful to think that all Colombians will raise awareness about the scourge of kidnapping. Perhaps many still cold to the suffering of others, but any attempt to knock down that wall that hinders the search for peace, have a positive impact on the knowledge that people have about the problems faced by the country.
However, it is useless sensationalism that the media have covered certain events, such as the child abduction and murder of Luis Santiago Pelayo, more touching than it was, left little teaching and also took advantage of the dramatic situation for rating.
So how do you get to awaken a real sensitivity? When the media and the state to efficiently meet their social responsibility, it is necessary to work from below to be the community itself that construct, together, a knowledge objective and disinterested that can free us from the indifference that has hijacked the country.
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