The Press in Colombia “Rediscovers” Peace
The Press in Colombia Rediscovers Peace
By Constanza Vieira
BOGOTA, Sep 13 2012 (IPS) - What are the obstacles to peace in war-torn Colombia? When government and rebel negotiators asked themselves this question, they concluded that one problem was that the media in this country had turned peace itself into a dirty word.
But Enrique Santos the former owner of the leading daily newspaper, El Tiempo, older brother of President Juan Manuel Santos, and a key participant in the preliminary talks with the rebels reportedly quipped: That can be fixed in two weeks.
IPS was told about the comment by a source close to the leftist Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). Enrique Santos reportedly made his remark during the exploratory talks that began a year and a half ago and led to the presidents Aug. 27 announcement that formal peace talks would start in October.
That assertion, if he really made it, is also a confession about how news is handled in a manipulative fashion, journalist Arturo Guerrero told IPS.
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