In a long interview granted to
Nice Matin
, the ex-hostage candidate for the presidential election in Colombia explains the motivations for his return to politics.
The Franco-Colombian returns in particular to the impact of the six long years of detention in the jungle.
Read alsoIngrid Betancourt, politics at the heart
“
After my release, I needed to rebuild myself personally, psychologically.
To rebuild my family ties, my living space.
To find a place in the world.
It was not easy
, ”she confided to the regional daily.
“
I made peace a long time ago.
Not only with the Colombian people whom I have always adored, but especially with my captors
”, she affirms later in the interview.
Coming out of her forced retirement from political life, Ingrid Betancourt also declares that she is not afraid to relive the scenario of 20 years ago, even if she recognizes that "
there may be unforeseen events
", "
but I am surrounded professionals whose mission is to help me see what could escape me in certain situations.
I feel more in a position of strength, than of fragility
, ”says the candidate.
On her candidacy, Ingrid Betancourt affirms that she is committed to fighting against “
the system of corruption which dominates
”.
“
Colombians today are aware that their rights and their life plan are stopped and defeated by the system of corruption that dominates.
I came back to politics to give them another perspective
.”
The candidate had also initially committed to the coalition at the center of the political spectrum before leaving it, denouncing corruption, which "
is metastasizing everywhere, in all institutions, at all levels of the country
", insists- she in the
Nice Matin
newspaper
.
The peace agreement “gave hope”
Asked about the results of the peace process initiated in 2016 with the Farc in particular, the ex-hostage admits that he "
gave the impression that there was a roadmap, a process that could free us from violence
" .
If this controversial agreement could be criticized and did not prevent new violence, it “
gave new hope, hope to the Colombians
”, estimates the Franco-Colombian candidate.
On the comparison of her candidacy outside the parties with that of Emmanuel Macron in 2017, Ingrid Betancourt recognizes that there is a similarity in her "
bet
" to make "
a cross section and not an ideological one
" which can "
unite a much broader way than what we traditionally witness within the extreme left or the extreme right
" by addressing "
directly the base without going through the diktat of the parties
".
Also referring to her link with France, she reaffirms her attachment to a country to which she “
owes a lot
”.
“
I could not have rebuilt myself without the support of the French, and even without the love of the French
”.
Going into politics in France and standing for election?
“
I was offered it at one point
,” she says.
Read also20 years ago, the kidnapping of Ingrid Betancourt by the Farc
Credited with 5% in the polls, the candidate declares that she will go “
to the end
”.
The polls “
do not reflect the real voting intention of Colombians.
The polls often come from organizations close to such and such a candidate.
They are biased
”.