CHRONICLE

The man who gave hope back to Colombia

ONE STORY, ONE COUNTRY, ONE MAN

ÁLVARO URIBE VÉLEZ

The first goal achieved by the Uribe government was to bring the paramilitaries into a peace
process, and in 2003 the demobilization of their structures began.

Foto

One of the main missions of Álvaro Uribe’s mandate in Colombia during 2002-2010 was to
defeat the guerrillas by military means, Uribe managed to keep the guerrillas away from the
cities, the highways and forced them to go into the jungle.

During his administration, the AUC was demobilized, more than 20,000 paramilitaries were
reintegrated into civilian life, the Justice and Peace Law was applied and the heads of the
self-defense groups were extradited. During this government, international tourism grew
and therefore also the country's economic income.

“We did not come here to complain, we came to work”.

Born on July 4, 1952, Medellín, he is a Colombian lawyer, businessman and politician of

conservative ideology, considered by the international and local press as the most
influential politician of the XXI century in Colombia.

He was president of the republic, president of the protem Pore of the Andean community,
senator of the republic, governor of Antioquia, mayor of Medellín, councilman of Medellín,
director of civil aeronautics, secretary of the ministry of labor.

During his presidency kidnapping dropped from 2,282 to 213 cases per year and homicides
decreased from 29,000 to 16,000. Inflation was 7% in 2002, dropping to 2% by the end of
his term, the unemployment rate went from almost 16% to 11% and foreign investment
went from $2 billion per year to $7 billion in the same period, the gross domestic product
grew an average of 4.47% per year and Colombia was one of the three countries that had
positive economic growth during the world crisis of 2008.