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The Colombian Times

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Armero, Colombia Sunday, November 17, 1985

twenty five cents
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Colombian President Refuses to Help

People after Volcanic Tragedy
By: Vianna Bassani
On November 13, 1985,
the Nevado del Ruiz
Volcano erupted in
northern Colombia causing
mass destruction among
the town of Armero. This
volcano erupted after
being dormant for 69
years. The eruption caused
ice caps to melt, which
created a mudslide. The
mudslide killed 23,000
people when it wiped away
everything in its path. In
response to all this the
President of Colombia has
done nothing to help.

Armero, Colombia after

mudslide destroys town from

days after the eruption. He

arrived in his new safari
jacket which was tailored
to fit him perfectly. He
publically announced that
this was the worst
catastrophe of the
century. The people of
Colombia can feel a sense
of closure now that the
President is here, right.
The President believes
that the people who were
killed will be impossible to
remove from the site.
Because of this, he made
the site holy ground.
At army tents, the
President is said to have
made promises to help
people with the relief
process. As we are
informed, none of these
promises have been
fulfilled. A journalist, Rolfe
Carl, has asked the
President for a pump, and
that promise has also been
neglected.
Doctors and nurses

encouraged them to keep

working.
The President did not
end his visit there; he went
to see Azucena, the girl
trapped in the mud. He
waved at the girl and used
a microphone to enhance
his speaking as he was
streamed on television all
over the world. He did not
make any efforts to help
the girl. His pump also
never arrived.
As we followed the
Presidents visit after the
eruption, we were able to
find out what his true
intentions were. The
President did not come to
help the people around
Armero, he came to keep
his image. He made many
promises that he ignored
and caused stress among
the people. The little girl,
Azucena has now died
because the President did
not get a pump. As we try
to get through this

volcanic eruption

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President Belisario
Betancur visited the town
of Armero just

have been working tireless

hours to assists injured
people in need. Instead of
trying to help them
by bringing people to
assist them, the President
has

tragedy, the actions of

President Belisario
Betancur make it that
much harder.