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RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC//USDP ADMIN/CHAIRS//

UNCLAS BOGOTA 000470 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PGOV PTER PHUM CO
SUBJECT: MILLIONS OF COLOMBIANS MARCH AGAINST THE FARC 
 
REF: BOGOTA 376 
 
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Summary 
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¶1.  On February 4, millions of Colombians in Bogota and 
dozens of other cities marched against the Revolutionary 
Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and kidnapping.  As many as 
two million marched in Bogota, in what leading daily "El 
Tiempo" described as the largest demonstration in Colombian 
history.  No violence was reported.  Organizers also 
coordinated simultaneous marches across Latin America, in the 
U.S., Europe, and Asia.  The march captured international 
attention after two hostages released in January shared 
first-hand accounts of the FARC's inhumane treatment of 
hostages.  While a myriad of groups and causes jumped on the 
event's bandwagon, organizers retained their original clear 
focus against kidnapping and the FARC.  Some hostage family 
members, leadership of the opposition Polo Party, and Senator 
Piedad Cordoba were heavily criticized for not supporting the 
march.  End Summary. 
 
------------------------ 
Massive, Historic Crowds 
------------------------ 
 
¶2.  The February 4 march generated historically huge turnouts 
in Colombia's major cities -- including an estimated one to 
two million participants in Bogota and a half million in 
Cali.  Major thoroughfares in Bogota were thronged with 
demonstrators shouting "No more FARC!" and "Liberty!"  Crowds 
in Bogota overflowed the Plaza Bolivar and surrounding 
streets, and Bogota's Seventh Avenue leading to the Plaza was 
a sea of people for miles.  The Media reported that the march 
was the largest demonstration in Colombian history, and 
longtime Bogota residents were stunned at the level of 
participation.  Contacts told us the scale of the 
demonstration represented a change in thinking since the late 
1990s, showing a new sense of pride and civic duty.  As one 
observer said, "we are not afraid of the FARC anymore."  El 
Tiempo similarly hailed an "awakening of civil society" and 
an "end to indifference." 
 
---------------- 
Worldwide Echoes 
---------------- 
 
¶3.  Domestic protests were joined by smaller marches on 
February 3 and 4 in cities around the world, from Tokyo and 
Sydney to Paris and Istanbul.  In Colombia and abroad marches 
occurred in a total of 193 cities.  In the U.S., events were 
held in Washington, New York, and Atlanta, among others. 
Venezuelans participated in Caracas and Maracaibo.  Peruvian 
President Alan Garcia saluted protesters singing the 
Colombian anthem on the steps of the government palace in 
Lima.  In Rome, the Pope issued a plea for the hostages' 
release.  The marches were peaceful and there were no 
reported incidents of violence or other trouble.  Bogota 
Police Chief GEN Rodolfo Palomino praised the crowd's 
orderliness, saying, "Never have we seen such good behavior." 
 
------------------ 
Noted Participants 
------------------ 
 
¶4.  The GOC encouraged its employees and officials to 
participate, and President Alvaro Uribe joined the march in 
Valledupar (Cesar), where he  expressed "gratitude to all 
Colombians who today have expressed with dignity and strength 
the rejection of kidnapping and of the kidnappers." 
Colombian Ambassador to the U.S. Carolina Barco lent her 
support in Washington, D.C.  Clara Rojas, one of the victims 
released last month, joined in Bogota, saying it was a 
historic moment to see all of Colombia united.  She said she 
hoped the FARC would hear their message and release all 
hostages.  In Bogota political leaders from across the 
E 
spectrum joined the march.  Liberal Party leader and 
former-President Cesar Gaviria said, "this is an expression 
of civil society that the country has never seen." 
 
------------------------ 
Criticism of the Critics 
------------------------ 
 
¶5.  Some hostage family members, leadership of the opposition 
Polo Democratico Party, and Senator Piedad Cordoba explicitly 
abstained from the march.  Family members declined to 
participate, they said, for fear of FARC reprisals.  Polo 
held a separate rally, ostensibly because the main march was 
an endorsement of President Uribe.  Still, Bogota mayor and 
leading Polo politician Samuel Moreno praised the event as a 
"march of hope."  Leading Polo centrists including former 
mayor Lucho Garzon and Senator Gustavo Petro broke with Polo 
leadership and joined the march.  The media and leading 
politicians criticized the Polo, especially Party leader 
Carlos Gaviria, and pointed out that a rejection of the FARC 
need not imply support for any other forms of violence or 
criminality.   Senator Piedad Cordoba, speaking from Caracas, 
reportedly called the event "a march of hate, of racism, of 
classism, and of exclusion." 
 
 
Brownfield