Colombian Rebel Hostage
Betancourt Turns 46 in
Captivity
Ingrid Betancourt, who
had been held hostage by
Colombian rebels for
over five years, turned
46 on Tuesday as her
family hoped this would
be her last birthday in
captivity.
Betancourt, a
French-Colombian
politician, was
kidnapped in February
2002 by Colombia's
largest rebel group, the
Revolutionary Armed
Forces of Colombia (FARC),
while she was
campaigning for
Colombia's presidency.
She is among the 45 FARC
hostages seeking to be
swapped for 500 FARC
members held in
government jails, a
process known in
Colombia as Humanitarian
Exchange.
Betancourt's husband
Juan Carlos Lecompte
told media that
Betancourt must be
released urgently,
saying "her health is
precarious and we are
worried she might die in
captivity."
Betancourt was last seen
in a video seized from
the rebels in November,
which showed her
appearing weak and
depressed, a marked
difference from her
pre-kidnapping status.
On the eve of her 46th
birthday, Lecompte
dropped over 20,000
photos of their two
children from a small
plane flying over the
jungles of southeastern
Colombia, where
Betancourt is believed
to be held, hoping at
least one of the photos
could reach her and
cheer her on the eve of
her birthday.
Their two kids also
broadcast a message on
Colombian radio on
Monday, encouraging
their mother to remain
hopeful.
In a Dec. 9 statement,
FARC said it planned to
release Clara Rojas,
Betancourt's
vice-presidential
running mate who was
kidnapped on the same
day, Rojas's son
Emmanuel and former
legislator Consuelo
Gonzalez.
FARC described the
release as a goodwill
gesture to Venezuelan
President Hugo Chavez,
who was named as
mediator between the
Colombian government and
FARC by Colombian
President Alvaro Uribe
in August.
Uribe stripped Chavez of
the role in November,
saying Chavez had broken
a protocol by asking a
Colombian army commander
how many soldiers were
in FARC's hands during a
phone conversation.
But Chavez continued the
mediating effort for the
release of hostages.
Chavez plans to speak to
the public on Wednesday
about details of the
handover of the three
hostages.
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