MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Uribe asks for more time to consolidate his “democratic security” policy

Just “a little while longer” Uribe requests from the Colombian electorate

Colombian president Alvaro Uribe asked for more time to defeat the terrorism that scourges his country and underlined that his “democratic security” policy needs a ‘little while’ longer”.

During his weekly visit to different communities, this time in the agrarian region of Urabá to the northeast of the country, Uribe emphasized the need to continue with the current strategies to combat terrorism and the drugs cartels which help finance the guerrillas.

“Terrorism has never defeated a democratic State. It could be that we are a little behind schedule, more than we planned, but that is why this democratic security policy needs a “little while” longer”, Uribe told local residents in a open assembly.

Uribe also revealed that the Colombian armed forces are in the midst of a major operation against the FARC (Armed Revolutionary Forces of Colombia) in a strategic area which for years has been under control of the guerrilla.

“That is a main strategic hydrographical star, Nudo de Paramillo, where FARC has been holed in for years but hopefully we expect to remove them”, said Uribe.

The democratic security policy, with US hardware and intelligence aid has helped turn the tide in favour of the Colombian State with the organized terrorist-guerrilla movements in retreat after having suffered heavy losses. In the peak of their power FARC and other groups controlled 20% of Colombian territory.

The Colombian president is currently in an aggressive campaign to bolster his hard-line approach and must decide if he effectively accepts running for a third consecutive mandate, which is constitutionally barred, but a referendum in a few weeks time could open the way,

Uribe elected in 2002, already managed re-election in 2006, through a referendum, and remains the most popular president in Colombia’s history (above 70% approval) and is also the Latinamerican leader with the longest sustained support among his people.