Confronts a major disaster

Days into his term, Colombia’s president confronts a major disaster

By Max Saltman

The earthquake is one of the first major challenges for Colombia’s new President Abelardo de la Espriella. He took office only last week after his election on a far-right platform, promising to strike hard at criminal groups and leftist militants in Colombia.

He mocked previous government efforts at peacemaking in his inaugural address, declaring that the “option of dialogue is completely exhausted.”

It had been expected that De la Espriella’s first week in office would be devoted to that security agenda. Criminals killed a police officer in northern Colombia with explosive drones less than 24 hours after de la Espriella was sworn in. The next day, his government shared video of 117 high-profile prisoners being shuffled to different maximum-security facilities.

“A country without security has nothing, and we are going to recover it with an iron fist,” de la Espriella said in the video.

Just before the earthquake struck, the BBC reported that De la Espriella’s government targeted and killed the alleged leader of a leftist militant group.

The earthquake may prove to be a test of de la Espriella’s anti-crime strategy in addition to his disaster management skills. The epicenter of the earthquake was in Chocó, one of Colombia’s more underdeveloped regions and a significant hub for criminal and militant activity.

It’s unclear how the security situation in Chocó will affect rescue, recovery and rebuilding efforts in the aftermath of the earthquake. Government statistics show that Colombia has seen a 20% increase in injuries from landmines planted by paramilitary groups in recent years.

Last year, the City Paper Bogota reported the department’s governor saying that people are “afraid to walk” in many areas for fear of triggering a mine.