La Franco-Colombian and ex-hostage Ingrid Betancourt, candidate for the presidential election at the end of May in Colombia, announced on Thursday March 10 that she had chosen as her potential vice-president the colonel who had saved her in 2008 after six years of captivity at the hands of of the Farc guerrillas. “I had to choose the person I consider the best partner to carry out this mission against corruption: Colonel José Luis Esparza,” Ingrid Betancourt said in an interview with online media Cambio.
Now retired, Colonel Esparza was the “hero of Jaque”, underlined the ex-hostage, 61, in reference to the famous operation of the Colombian army which allowed his release. “He’s someone I trust because he saved my life,” she said. The Franco-Colombian left a centrist coalition in January to run alone for the presidential election scheduled for May 29 in Colombia.
Colonel Esparza, who retired from the army at the end of last year, commanded the complex operation, mounted by the army under humanitarian cover, during which Ingrid Betancourt and 14 other hostages had freed without violence from the hands of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), once the most powerful guerrillas on the South American continent and which laid down their arms in 2016.
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The issue of corruption at the center of the campaign
“He goes deep into the jungle, deceives the guerrillas and manages to save us without firing a single shot,” recalled Ingrid Betancourt about her savior. “No doubt I’m a little more to the right than Ingrid. But the most important thing is that we are united by the sensitive issue of corruption,” commented José Luis Esparza in the same interview.
According to the press, his departure from the army was due to allegations that he was close to the ELN (National Liberation Army), the last recognized guerrilla in Colombia. The officer denies these accusations. Ingrid Betancourt affirms that “her withdrawal from the army without explanation” was a new illustration of the “corruption” which plagues the country.
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Carrying a feminist discourse and against corruption, the Franco-Colombian presents herself under the colors of her own environmentalist party, Vert Oxygen. She wants to be an alternative between the left opposition, currently leading in the polls, and the right in power. By her declarations, she shook up the electoral campaign, notably breaking up the centrist coalition. “Hurricane Betancourt”, or “Betancourt sets fire to the countryside” thus headlined the Colombian reference media.
A controversial figure in Colombia
However, she is only credited with 3 to 4% of voting intentions, and remains a relatively controversial figure in Colombia, where she does not arouse much sympathy and where she is accused in particular of having tried to profit financially from her detention. .
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Colombians will vote on May 29 to find a successor to conservative President Ivan Duque, who cannot run again. They are also voting this Sunday, March 13 for legislative elections, but also to choose the candidates of several political coalitions in the presidential election. The left-wing candidate, Gustavo Petro, is currently leading the race, according to the polls.