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Thousands March in Colombia for Freedom of FARC Hostages

18:08 H | Topics: Colombia - Latin America - Politics

The headline is an understatement. Hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets of Colombian cities (video after the jump) and towns -- as well as in other countries-- on Sunday to protest the continuing captivity of FARC hostages.

Recently freed FARC hostage Ingrid Betancourt -- the causa célebre's celebrity -- was on hand for the protest in Paris along with a bunch of other celebrities of the Latino farándula:

In Paris, Betancourt led chants of "No more hostages!" as she addressed a crowd of several thousand people who came to watch artists perform in a square across the river Seine from the Eiffel Tower.

Colombian star Juanes, Spain's Miguel Bose, and French artists Renan Luce and Michel Delpech were among the singers playing at the concert.

At Betancourt's side was the socialist Bertrand Delanoe, who told the crowd: "Our duty is to continue fighting for the liberation of all hostages in Colombia."

Back in Bogotá, shouts of "Libérenlos ya!" were heard as the streets swelled with crowds demanding the safe return of the hostages still being held by the FARC. 7 marches left 7 different parts of the city to join together at the end of the protest at the Parque Simón Bolívar. Check out the video:

I completely support this whole thing with the exception of the pro-government rhetoric being blindly thrown about.

Via / AFP

Related

• Ingrid Betancourt Wants a Place at the Table for the FARC (Tuesday, Sep 09 2008)
• Ecuador to Take in 50,000 Colombian Refugees (Thursday, Aug 28 2008)