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Colombia Abductions Probably Fall to Least in 8 Years

From Bloomberg.com
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Colombia, where kidnappings are frequent enough to hurt the economy, probably had its fewest reported abductions since 1996 last year after President Alvaro Uribe improved security against armed rebels.

Kidnappings fell 41 percent to about 1,300 in 2004, according to an estimate by the Bogota-based Security and Democracy Foundation, a watchdog group that monitors Colombia's 40-year civil conflict. Abductions peaked in 2000 to a record 3,706. The government may report 2004 figures as early as today.

Rebel groups use ransoms to help finance the conflict, while criminal gangs stage abductions to extort payments from wealthy residents. Last year's decline in kidnappings and truck hijackings helped improve consumer confidence, boost investment and accelerate economic growth in Colombia to almost 4 percent from 1.9 percent when Uribe took office in 2002.

``Attacks on towns have practically disappeared, and security on highways has improved substantially,'' said Carlos Enrique Moreno, general manager of Homecenter, the country's largest home improvement chain, in an interview. The Bogota-based company boosted its workforce last year by 500 to 1,400 employees as sales surged 50 percent to $140 million.

Direct foreign investment rose 50 percent to $2.1 billion in the first nine months of 2004 from a year earlier. The peso has risen 17.6 percent against the dollar in the past 12 months and the IGBC stock index had the world's second-best performance in dollar terms in 2004, according to Bloomberg data.

More Secure

Eugenio Velez, 44, a coffee grower in Palestina, Caldas province in western Colombia, said he has improved efficiency on his 150-hectare (375-acre) farm as security concerns fade.

``I used to only come once or twice a week and leave before it got dark for fear of being kidnapped or attacked,'' Velez said in an interview.

``Being there on the farm full-time is key to improving efficiency, especially when prices are low,'' he said. Velez employs about 50 workers on a year-round basis and as many as 300 during harvest time.

Kidnappings cost the economy about $260 million between 1996 and 2003 in lost human capital, ransom payments and funding for government anti-kidnapping programs, according to a study prepared by the National Planning Department in June. The four- decade conflict in its entirety, including kidnappings, cost about 2 percentage points of economic growth a year, Planning Department studies show.

Kidnappings account for about 22 percent of the financing of the insurgent Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia and the National Liberation Army and the paramilitary United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia, said the planning department study.

Criminal Connection

The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia in 2004 accounted for 21 percent of kidnappings, down from 32 percent in 2002, while National Liberation Army abductions fell to 10 percent from 30 percent in 2001, according to the Security and Democracy Foundation.

Criminal gangs committed about 28 percent of abductions last year, compared with 10 percent in 2001, the study said. Government sweeps in the cities have forced insurgents to contract out many planned kidnappings to urban criminal gangs, said Alfredo Rangel, 50, director of the foundation.

``There is a very productive alliance between criminals in the cities and rural guerrilla groups near cities in which the criminals abduct victims and sell them to the rebels,'' Rangel said.

Uribe, 52, fulfilling a campaign promise, increased the number of soldiers and police to 358,000 from 280,000 since he took office in 2002. Security forces increased the number of military-initiated combat operations by 57 percent to 2,414 in 2003 from the previous year, Security and Democracy said. Under Uribe, 9,906 insurgents and paramilitaries have put down their weapons and joined government jobs-training and social programs, the Defense Ministry says.

`More Calls'

``We are getting many more calls on Colombia than we used to, as people are asking for security outlooks and protection details to look into possible investment,'' Mike Ackerman, managing director of the Miami-based Ackerman Group, a corporate security consulting firm, said in an interview.

Insurgent demolition of highway bridges decreased to seven in the first 11 months of 2004 from 31 in the same period in 2003, the Defense Ministry said. Most bridges on major and secondary roads are now protected by troops inside sandbagged bunkers.

Through November, the armed forces captured 10,327 insurgents and paramilitaries, 10 percent more than the previous year, while security forces killed 2,341 members of illegal armed groups, 12 percent more than a year earlier, Defense Minister Jorge Alberto Uribe said in a statement on the ministry's Web site on Dec 9.

Cocaine

Uribe's policies improved enforcement against other crimes. Seizures of cocaine, another source of funding for illegal armed groups, totaled 141 tons through November, 36 percent more than a year earlier, the defense minister said.

Homicides are projected to end the year at about 20,200, or 12 percent less than the 23,013 homicides reported in 2003, Security and Democracy said in its study.

Colombia's nationwide murder rate will end the year at about 45 murders per 100,000 inhabitants, the lowest in the past 18 years. It peaked at 79 per 100,000 in 1991, the study says.

Kidnappings in Iraq, where most abductions go unreported, totaled about 200 foreigners last year and probably fewer than 1,000 Iraqis, Ackerman said. Mexico, Argentina and Brazil also had hundreds of abductions, he said.

By Hunter on Jan 5, 2005, 11:15 in Friendly Talkzone.

ColombianoX says on Jan 5, 2005, 12:09:

This is good news, I'm glad to hear it. Little by little Colombia will rise. Thanks for the article.

CX

ColombianoX 'Defensor de la Colombianidad'

0 funny, 0 helpful.

ColombianoX says on Jan 5, 2005, 12:12:

"Homecenter, the country's largest home improvement chain, in an interview. The Bogota-based company"

I certainly hope this isn't a colombian company with that name!

ColombianoX

'Defensor de la Colombianidad'

ColombianoX 'Defensor de la Colombianidad'

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Tinto (Moderator) says on Jan 5, 2005, 12:15:

FWIW Kidnappings through November were 1250 (source: Fondelibertad) so they must be estimating approximately 50 for December.

I was looking at the month-by-month figures and for the first half or three quarters of the year there were 100-170 each month. But Sep, Oct and Nov were at 30-50, a pretty dramatic drop.

Factoid: 75% of victims were men. Lots of other interesting stuff on the site such as occupation, who committed the crime, how many victims died, how many were rescued, etc.

0 funny, 0 helpful.

juanalejo says on Jan 5, 2005, 12:57:

Homecenter The Homecenters (yes in English) are a product from a joint venture between Corona as Tinto said and Chilean company Sodimac.

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ColombianoX says on Jan 5, 2005, 13:04:

"Next time you're taking a leak in Colombia, you'll probably see "Corona" on the urinal,"

Well, at least they say "Corona" and not "Crown".

"The Homecenters (yes in English) are a product from a joint venture between Corona as Tinto said and Chilean company Sodimac."

Hmmm, eso de estar poniéndole nombres en inglés a nuestras compañias es preocupante. Demuestra una falta de pundonor y un complejo de inferioridad. Tenemos que cambiar esto.

ColombianoX

'Defensor de la Colombianidad'

ColombianoX 'Defensor de la Colombianidad'

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juanalejo says on Jan 5, 2005, 14:07:

ColombianoX It gets worse, the second largest is called Home Sentry, what ever that means, and the ready to go furniture shop across the street is called Tugó, con tilde en la o.

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Tinto (Moderator) says on Jan 5, 2005, 14:12:

ColX is going to need indigestion pills tonight. ;-)

By the way, Sentry Hardware is a chain of stores in Gringolandia. I have no idea if they are affiliated with the stores in Colombia or just a ripoff of a brand name similar to "Whopper King" vs. "Burger King"

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Desideria (Moderator) says on Jan 5, 2005, 14:12:

it's a shame I think. I'm not saying the signs in English ought ot be prohibited, but I do think some measures ought to be taken to disencourage the trend.
Cheers,
Desi

"I have opinions of my own, strong opinions, but I don't always agree with them."-President George W. Bush

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ColombianoX says on Jan 5, 2005, 14:25:

I agree Desi. I have no problem with these names if they are multinational companies or they belong to english-speaking immigrants. It's when its colombians who are doing this that I don't agree. Here in south Florida, there are many businesses with names in spanish, but that's because they're owned by hispanic-americans!

CX

ColombianoX 'Defensor de la Colombianidad'

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Desideria (Moderator) says on Jan 5, 2005, 14:40:

fine with me tinto: glad that you know about the good stuff:) Add Kosta Boda snowball crystal tea light holders to your list of exportable Swedish products.
ColombianoX: would Desi's B&B be acceptable? I don't want to contribute to the cultural imperialism.
Cheers,
Desi

"I have opinions of my own, strong opinions, but I don't always agree with them."-President George W. Bush

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ColombianoX says on Jan 5, 2005, 15:47:

"ColombianoX: would Desi's B&B be acceptable? I don't want to contribute to the cultural imperialism."

Of course it's acceptable. For you, anything.

Saludes,

CX

ColombianoX 'Defensor de la Colombianidad'

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