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Colombia
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COLOMBIA

Capital: (Santafé de) Bogotá (pop. 7,350,000)

Population: 41,6620,073

Area: 1,138,910 sq. km.

Economy: In 2002, Colombia ranked 67th in the UN's Human Development Index survey and 29th in total GDP, with a per capita GDP of $6,218. In 2001, 36.13% of its revenues went to foreign debt service and 55% of its population lived in poverty.

Main Language: Spanish

Monkey's Name: El Mico, El Mono (El Me-koh, El Moh-noh)

Fun Fact: Colombia's Avianca, founded in 1919, was the second commercial airline in history (the U.S. Benoist Airlines, which serviced Florida, was the first). Colombia's early foray into air travel had much to do with the country's wildly varied topography and the resultant impracticality of establishing reliable road, rail, and river transport links.

The Monkey visited Colombia in June of 2003. He had quite an experience there, being kidnapped at gunpoint and recovered by ransom (honestly, see page 2 to read the full account). He spent most of his time in the sprawling capital city, Santafé de Bogotá, but also traveled to the far east of the country, to the town of Tame, in the war-torn Arauca department.

The civil war that has been raging in Colombia for over 40 years has had a devastating effect on the people of this beautiful country. A few facts speak volumes about the misery this intractable conflict is heaping on the Colombian people. The war has forced over 2 million people to flee their homes; Colombia now has the third largest internally displaced population in the world (after Angola and Sudan). Colombia suffers from the highest murder rate in the world, with an annual average of 65 murders per 100,000 people (15 ahead of second place South Africa). For years, Colombia has been the most dangerous country in the world for trade unionists; in 2003 there were more murders of unionists in Colombia than in the rest of the world combined. One Colombian teacher was killed every week during 2003. An estimated 55% of Colombians live in poverty, despite the country's immense wealth in natural resources and business savoir-faire. Outside assistance, primarily from the United States, is focused more on ineffective campaigns to bolster the Colombian military and eradicate illicit crops than on resolving the socio-economic disputes that launched—and continue to propel—the war. Colombia is now the third leading recipient of U.S. military aid (after Israel and Egypt). The violence in Colombia is perpetrated by all sides: the left-wing guerrillas, the right-wing paramilitaries, and the state security forces in the police and military. Impunity is the order of the day in Colombia, and there is no real end in sight to this bloody quagmire.

The Monkey's trip to Colombia was not altogether an enjoyable one given these sad realities, but he's glad he went. He plans to return and see more of this unique country someday, hopefully in a climate of peace rather than war and suffering.

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The Monkey climbs a tree in the pleasant confines of the Quinta de Bolívar, in Bogotá.
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