The four indigenous brothers, who have been missing for 40 days in the jungles of southern Colombia, were taken to Bogotá at dawn, are out of danger and recovering in the capital’s Central Military Hospital. After his visit this Saturday, President Gustavo Petro held the “Meeting of Indigenous and Military Knowledge” during an intense search that kept the country in suspense, but for now he has decided to delegate his state’s spokesman to other authorities. The children are in an “acceptable” clinical condition, despite the inhospitable environment in which they have been able to survive, their defense minister, Iván Velásquez, reported.
Lesly, 13, and her brothers Solecni, 9; Tien Noriel, 4; and Cristin Neryman, a one-year-old baby, were rescued from the dense jungle on Friday night by a helicopter that failed to land on the ground and was waiting 60 meters in the air above the treetops. From there they were taken to the nearest town of San José del Guaviare, only to be later transferred to the Colombian capital in a C-295 aircraft configured as an ambulance, where they received medical attention. In a video released by Civil Aeronautics, children can be seen lying on the ground while military doctors give them medicine and oral serum to keep them hydrated.
“We must recognize Lesly not only for her courage but also for her leadership qualities. Thanks to her, the three little brothers were able to survive by her side, with her care, with the knowledge of the jungle,” emphasized the Minister of Defense in his statements from the hospital itself, who also recognizes that the indigenous communities participated in the joint pursuit of the armed forces.
Iván Velásquez, Defense Minister, at the Bogotá Military Hospital, where surviving children are being cared for. Photo: Nathalia Angarita (El País) | Video: Portal
“Operation Hope” was the name of the government mission to find the brothers, the only survivors, after the plane they were traveling with three adults, including their mother, crashed in the Amazon jungle between the departments of Caquetá and Guaviare 1 .May. The minors wandered lost in the lush vegetation for more than a month. Up to 184 people “combed” the jungle every day, 112 from the public sector and 72 locals. The search went around the world, with videos and photos of the clues the army found: a few diapers, a bottle, a shoe or a bitten apple. With expectations of finding her alive being snuffed out, the military erupted in cheers this Friday when they heard the code word they were going to use to report the find: “miracle” on the radio. They repeated it four times, one for each child.
President Petro, in a message on his social networks that he accompanied this Saturday morning with images of the visit, has highlighted elements such as the meeting of knowledge, the joint effort of the Armed Forces and the Indigenous Guard, and the respect for the jungle that was given by his wife Verónica Alcocer and his daughters Sofía and Antonella. “Here is another path for Colombia: I believe this is the true path of peace,” the President said. “Here is a new Colombia. What is life above all else? The goal that unites us is life,” he wrote. The day before, Petro confirmed recent news from Havana, where he had signed a ceasefire with the ELN guerrillas, the cornerstone of the total peace his government is seeking.
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Despite some bites and skin injuries, the four brothers are in “acceptable clinical condition,” said General Carlos Rincón Arango, director of the Central Military Hospital. They will receive nutritional and psychological support and will remain hospitalized for two to three weeks. Medical reports have ruled out life-threatening conditions, he added. “They still speak little and are weak, although they want to play,” added Astrid Cáceres, director of the Colombian Institute for Family Welfare. “Let’s take our time.”
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