The National Liberation Army (ELN) this Friday afternoon released the sergeant who kidnapped her two children on Monday, the army and the Defense Ministry confirmed. The published photos show the mother in her uniform together with her two children – aged six and eight – and the family dog. In one of them, the girl carries her unicorn stuffed animal in her arms while her brother hides behind a flag from the ombudsman’s office. The three are surrounded by men and women wearing gray uniforms, their faces covered in black and red scarves with the guerrilla’s name written on them.
The Office of the Ombudsman has reported that the release was finalized after mediation by the Regional Office and the Catholic Church. It also noted that the sergeant and her children were admitted “in apparently good health”.
Ghislaine Karina Ramírez and her two children – Angie Rocío and Juan Camilo – were kidnapped on Monday while traveling to Arauca. Originally from Melgar, Tolima, the family made their way to a new life in this border community with Venezuela after the army ordered the transfer of Ramírez to the base in the area. The grandparents, Gerardo and María Nancy, said goodbye to them on Sunday and were worried about what their life would be like in Arauca. “Several times I told him to ask for leave. She said no. He said to me: “No, dad, it’s an order that I have to obey,” Gerardo said in a phone conversation with EL PAÍS a few minutes before the release.
The family’s greatest concern these days was the health of autistic Juan Camilo. “I know my daughter is strong in the current situation, but I’m worried about the children. It’s a different situation, especially his. When he gets angry, pushes, bites … when he behaves like that towards another person, you are afraid that they will treat him badly,” explained the grandfather.
The armed forces indicated that the ELN was the armed group behind the kidnapping. “We hold the ELN Eastern Front responsible for the lives and physical integrity of our NCOs and minors,” said a statement released Wednesday by the 8th Division. For its part, the Office of the High Commissioner for Peace asked the group to comment on the matter, and several political leaders said the kidnapping went against what was expected of a guerrilla group negotiating peace. However, the ELN remained silent.
Defense Minister Iván Velásquez sparked controversy on Friday morning when he blamed the sergeant for the kidnapping. “She [estaba] alone, with her children, in her vehicle, traveling, in an area where the National Liberation Army is known to be [ELN]. This is an act of imprudence,” he explained to various media in Buenaventura (Valle del Cauca). According to him, members of the public authority are expected to be “very careful” in their movements, especially in dangerous areas. He later clarified on Twitter that his comment should not be used to “shift responsibility for the kidnapping, which is blamed without any nuance on the illegal armed organization.”
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