Colombia’s Much More Than Drugs
I just saw one of those newspaper articles linking Colombia with drugs that always makes my blood boil. It’s an article from news.com.au about tours of cocaine factories in Colombia. I’m only linking that article so you can see I’m not inventing this, but I hope nobody who reads this site is interested in such tours.
As far as I can tell, these tours are informal arrangements that are promoted by bloggers posting about their experiences and backpackers telling other travellers. When there are so many beautiful places to see in Colombia, why would you want to see where cocaine is grown and made?
I’ve got quite a few Colombian friends here in Australia, and I’m constantly hearing from them that when they meet new people and say they’re from Colombia, inevitably someone will mention drugs. It’s such a pity, because all the Colombians I know are really proud of their country, and ashamed of the bad reputation it’s working to fix.
Fortunately, the news.com.au article does end with another opinion, and this is the one I hope any reader here will remember if they even consider for a second going on a cocaine tour. It’s the opinion of owner of the Platypus Hotel in Bogota:
The production of cocaine significantly damages the environment of Colombia. And money spent on cocaine goes directly to support groups fighting in Colombia’s internal conflict, leading to assassinations, massacres and one of the world’s largest refugee problems
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