That was the statement of President Álvaro Uribe Vélez, from Honduras, declaring that his Government will only be satisfied until there is not even once case of union leader’s murders. “We have 156 people in jail and at nowadays we are protecting 10 thousand Colombians with direct and individual safety. Of these, 2 thousand are union leaders, and none of the ones protected have been murdered”, said the Head of State.

San Pedro Sula, March 16 (SP). The President of Colombia, Álvaro Uribe Vélez, affirmed this Monday from Honduras, that recent investigations of the Legal System pointed that the country has no longer a systematic action against union leaders.

That was stated by the President, when he was receiving the “Honorary Decoration”, Extraordinary Great Cross and Golden Plaque from the National Congress, and the ”Francisco Morazán Order”, Great Cross level, Golden Plaque and First Class Band , from the Presidency of Honduras.

“There was years when 256 union leaders were murdered. We have made a commitment to protect them. Until last year, 38 official teachers, members of unions, who have a population of 1.250.000 people, were murdered. We are not going to be satisfied until there is not even once case of union leader’s murders. But I also want to underline the following: there is no longer a systematic action to exterminate union leaders. Legal investigations have probed it”, pointed the Head of State.

He highlighted that nowadays there are “156 people in jail”, and in addition, the Government is giving direct individual protection to 10 thousand Colombians, from which 2 thousand are union leaders. “And none of the ones protected have been murdered”
The President pointed that the country had 3.500 kidnappings and that last year there were 197 in distant areas. Also, he told the international community that there were years when 15 journalists were killed, but in the past two years “There has not been one single murder of journalists” .

Uribe stressed that, even though safety has improved, the country is not pleased because human lives can not be measured from cold statistic numbers, and that is why Colombia wants zero murders and zero kidnappings.

However, he explained that Democratic Security Policy has brought many intangibles to the country, as the weakening of guerrillas and dismantle of paramilitary groups.

“The State has gained back the monopoly for fighting violence. Today, we have weak guerrillas, drug trafficking bands, some of them feed by paramilitary reoffend, but now anyone can not say that there are groups replacing the State in the fight against violent groups”, said the President.

And added, “President Zelaya and Mrs Foreign Secretary: if this would have happened 20 years ago, there would not be people saying what some have said to me, that I am an expression of the right. They would say: what a great left leader, what a way to restore the State’s monopoly to fight criminals”.

Not left nor right

President Álvaro Uribe insisted as well, that security is a democratic value needed by all the countries, and that is why all alternative power, left or right needs security.

“I don’t go with left or right. I only go with every day’s popular work of social cohesion”, expressed the Colombian leader.

He pointed that the continent has to move forward in the road of unity instead of the road of polarization. And, in that way, he congratulated his counterpart of Honduras, Manuel Zelaya, for being a unity builder, “not a fuel of polarization”.