Colombian presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt was the world’s most famous hostage and in a massive surge of good luck, the Director of, "2320 Days in the Jungle," a documentary about Ingrid Betancourt made by award-winning director Angus Macqueen is in Mompós at the same time as Colombia Calling and tells us a little bit about the making of the film. 

We learn about Betancourt and also speak of Macqueen's other films such as, "Cocaine," and "El Chapo", as well as about his latest project with Diego Maradona. Tune in to learn about these characters.

Yana Shevkirova came to my attention a few months ago after having written a compelling article about Bogotá on her website, www.rebelaffairs.com, entitled: "A City that Vacillates." So, it is with great pleasure that this Londoner with roots in Bulgaria and beyond and with a background in, Peace and Conflict Studies and Intelligence and International Security should join us on the Colombia Calling podcast to discuss themes of great interest and importance affecting all of us here today. 

The key items for conversation were, the grievances between individuals and groups in Colombia, the dehumanization of the "other" and the stigma surrounding an enemy. We discuss this and the current political climate in Colombia in addition to some fascinating insights into what is going on in Venezuela from an intelligence perspective. 

Tune in for a timely and profoundly analytical converation based on academia and personal experience.

This is a very special episode since we have the opportunity to speak once again with our "anonymous" interviewee from Ep 251 (What is happening to the FARC guerrillas in Colombia right now?), who revisits us and shares the most recent findings from the next part of her research. The demobilization, reincorporation and reintegration of the AUC paramilitaries in Colombia. 

We find that there is much ground to compare and contrast between the processes of the FARC and the AUC, but also, a lot to be concerned about too. Most significantly, one common theme is a significant lack of psychosocial help being afforded to people who have committed such atrocities and relive them in their dreams each night. 

Of course, this episode is once again, segmented and a snippet of Colombian news is brought to you by the director of Colombia Reports, Adriaan Alsema. 

Tune in!

For those, like myself, unfamiliar with José María Córdova, he was also known as the "Hero of Ayacucho", and was a General of the Colombian army during the Latin American War of independence from Spain. Our guest on Episode 263 of the Colombia Calling podcast, Emma Louise Jay, joins us from the town of El Retiro, not far from Córdova's place of birth and his untimely demise. 

Emma is investigating, not only the life and times of Jose María Córdova, but also his relationship with the British Consul at the time, James Henderson. Córdova fell for and was engaged to Henderson's daughter, something which may have caused some friction. 

So, we discuss a little of the politics, history and what is known about José María Córdova and his relationship with James Henderson, a journey which has taken Emma to the depths of the British Archives in London. 

Tune in to an elightening episode surrounding the history of one of Colombia's lesser known military heroes, and enjoy our new format news update from Adriaan Alsema of Colombia Reports.