2013 ingrid betancourt biography

Biography of Ingrid Betancourt

Ingrid Betancourt is a Colombian politician, who gained international attention for her six-year captivity at the hands of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). Born on Christmas Day in 1961, Ingrid comes from an intellectual family and her mother was a winner of a Colombian beauty pageant. She attended a French school in Bogota, Colombia, and later pursued her studies in France, where she successfully completed her degree at the Institute of Political Studies in Paris.

In France, Ingrid met Fabrice Delloye, whom she married and had two children with. Due to her husband's career as a diplomat, they frequently moved between countries. However, their marriage ended in separation, and Ingrid returned to her native Colombia with her children. It was there that she began her foray into politics, aiming to change the dire situation in the country.

In 1990, Ingrid started working at the Ministry of Finance in Colombia, and by 1994, she became a member of parliament. Her career progressed rapidly, and by 1998, she entered the Senate, taking a position completely opposed to the ideals of the country's president, who was perceived to be influenced by mafia and drug cartels.

In 2002, Ingrid launched her campaign for the presidency, making her the main adversary of the drug cartels. During a trip, her vehicle was stopped at a checkpoint, but it was too late when she realized that the soldiers did not belong to the national army. Consequently, she was captured by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia.

For the next six years, Ingrid endured captivity, constantly being moved from one location to another, deprived of basic hygiene, proper nutrition, and clothing. She struggled to establish any rapport with the soldiers who refused to listen to her requests, and if she asked for something like toothpaste, they would punish her by taking away everything she had, including food.

"I was in captivity for six years; it was one long, endless journey. We were transported on canoes down the Amazon, barefoot, driven deeper and deeper into the jungle," Ingrid recollected in one of her interviews. Despite her captivity, she managed to stay informed about world events through a radio and even learned about protests in Paris demanding their release from a random newspaper. She also learned about the death of her father.

Ingrid attempted to escape several times, but she was recaptured each time. Punishments were severe, with her being denied any means of hygiene after her first escape. Alongside other hostages, she suffered from various illnesses and endured several bone fractures.

On July 2, 2008, the hostages were supposed to be transferred to the new leader of the Revolutionary Armed Forces, who wanted to meet them for unknown reasons. They were brought to a helicopter pad, where they boarded a helicopter with the leader. However, shortly after taking off, the military apprehended the leader and handcuffed him. It turned out that the military had infiltrated the Revolutionary Armed Forces and had called under the guise of the new leader, whose voice was not yet known to everyone.

July 2, 2008, marked Ingrid's first day of freedom after 2,321 days of captivity, after enduring countless kilometers barefoot through the jungles and constant threats. It was during her captivity that Ingrid experienced true fear, as she recounts, "In those six years, I understood real animal fear for the first time. I felt it on the very first day when a gigantic fighter forced me to lie face down on the ground and stood on my hands. The terror I experienced drowned out the pain."

Ingrid Betancourt, who is also a French citizen, was awarded the National Order of the Legion of Honor in France. Following her release, journalists frequently asked her if she would continue her political career, but she never provided a clear answer. Instead, she shared that during her six years in captivity, she learned one thing that helped her survive: "There is only one instruction for happiness, and it is called the Bible."