The Colombian Cartel King

OBJECTIVES

1-To know in detail about the wealthiest criminal in history

2-To be able to express my views on Pablo Emilio Escobar Gaviria
3-To enhance vocabulary and pronunciation of certain english words commonly
used.
4-To learn various expressions used in the English language

INTRODUCTION

A drug lord, government official, hero, and villain. Pablo Escobar was born
December 1, 1949 in a town named Rionegro, Colombia. His mother, Hermilda was
a schoolteacher, and his father Abel farmed. Escobar had achieved a great quantity
of accomplishments, from the beginning to the end of his life. From his rise as a
lower class citizen, to then being amongst the prestigious group of people
associated with the economic rank of the 1 percent.

Pablo Escobar was a man of power and riches during his time in history. Escobar
was listed as the seventh richest man in the world in 1989. Coming from Medellin,
the second largest city in Colombia, Escobar started off as a small time gangster
and a car thief. His small time crimes would never amount to what he was going to
become. In the late 1970's Escobar and his cartel became one of the most powerful
organised crime organisations. The cartel consolidated the cocaine industry
controlling as much as 80 percent of cocaine worldwide.

He was considered the brains of the cartel and had a stand up reputation with the
people of Medellin. He built many things for the community such as a hospital,
housing for the poor and other types of charity. In addition, Escobar funded various
projects to aid the poor, earning him comparisons to Robin Hood. That perception
helped him win election to an alternate seat in the country’s Congress in 1982.
Escobar enjoyed widespread popularity among the poor in Colombia, especially in
his home state of Antioquia. According to sources, he had the ambition to
eventually become the President of the country. However, such philanthropic works
were offset by Escobar’s well-known ruthlessness. 
Review of Media

The beginning of Escobar’s reign over the law started in 1976. Pablo and his
cousin Gustavo had been arrested for illegal possession of 39 pounds of cocaine.
The charges that had been charged against them were very serious. Pablo had
influenced the judge to free them by a bribe. It was soon after the case had been
attempted to be reopen by a different judge who wanted Pablo arrested for his
actions, and knew the prior process of Escobar’s trial was unjust. Escobar 's case
was delayed by appeals, and even the DAS that had contributed to the arrest of
Pablo had been murdered. Pablo soon from his basis of dealing with the authorities
establish a trademark called “ Plata o Plomo”. This meaning silver or lead, which
simply means you either accept Escobar’s bribes or be killed. This strategy was so
strong and accumulated such a reputation among law enforcement officials, that it
is considered a primary reason Pablo was able to expand and grow his drug empire.
Therefore after Pablo’s mass murders of Judges and their family members he was
basically granted immunity. No judges were willing to take his cases. Thus any
charges against him were dropped, and suddenly all files on his cases would
vanish.

Escobar, a heavy pot-smoker cultivated a relaxed, informal life style with his friends
and associates. Escobar was not as friendly to his enemies he was vicious and
feared by everyone.
In 1989 the cartel reportedly placed a bomb aboard an airplane in an attempt to kill
an alleged informant. More than 100 people were killed.He become one of the most
feared terrorists in the world. The threats of extradition to the United States—which,
as the destination of most of the cartel’s drugs, had come to view Escobar as a top
target in its war on drugs—drew even greater retaliation from Escobar, who
reportedly said that he “would rather have a grave in Colombia than a jail cell in the
U.S.”

Amid the growing bloodshed, a massive manhunt was undertaken to find Escobar,
while the government also began negotiations for his surrender. In June 1991, on
the same day that the Colombian Congress voted to forbid extradition in the
country’s new constitution, Escobar surrendered and was subsequently jailed. His
imprisonment, however, had little effect on his criminal activities and his lifestyle. I
think the set up was not exactly onerous for the Colombian drug lord.He was
allowed to build a luxurious prison, which became known as La Catedral. Not only
did the facility include a nightclub, sauna, waterfall, and soccer field, it also had
telephones, computers, and fax machines.

However, after Escobar tortured and killed two cartel members at La Catedral,
officials decided to move him to a less-accommodating prison. Before he could be
transferred, Escobar escaped custody in July 1992. Pablo's flight from La Catedral
ushered in the last dramatic episode of his life.The Colombian government—
reportedly aided by U.S. officials and rival drug traffickers—launched a manhunt.
On December 2, 1993, Escobar celebrated his 44th birthday, allegedly enjoying
cake, wine, and marijuana. The next day his hideout in Medellín was discovered.
While Colombian forces stormed the building, Escobar and a bodyguard managed
to get to the roof. A chase and gunfight ensued, and Escobar was fatally shot.
Some, however, speculated that he took his own life. After he died, the Medellín
cartel soon collapsed.
MY VIEWS

I believe Pablo Escobar was something of an enigmatic figure. He grew up in the

urban squalor. he emerged as a drug trafficker at a time when Colombia was in the
midst of mass political violence effectively a civil war, and as the country also
became the global capital of the production of cocaine. Consequently, it is easy for
me to imagine that if Escobar had not emerged as the head of the Medellin Cartel
somebody else would have come to prominence in the Colombian drug trade
anyway, whether in Medellin, Cali or elsewhere. It could also be argued that he did
much to help the poor and disenfranchised, particularly in his home town at a time
when Colombia was suffering from appalling poverty and many people had
effectively been abandoned by the government in Bogota. Pablo gave handouts to
the poor, created jobs and developed Medellin's infrastructure. He even allowed
people free access to his zoo at Hacienda Napoles and buoyed people's spirits by
funding Atletico Nacional football team to such an extent that they won the Copa
Libertadores in 1989. This was the Robin Hood-type image of himself which
Escobar attempted to cultivate.
Was he a Modern day Robin Hood or a Murderous Tyrant? Escobar to this day is
still a highly controversial character and is perceived differently throughout
Columbia.

In my opinion, Escobar was very high on neuroticism because throughout high life
he cared very much what people thought of him and always wanted to be liked. 
Some of Escobar’s main traits were:
Dominating: Escobar was such a high achiever, he had so much ambition that he
wanted to own everything, dominate everything.
Loving (to family), One of Pablo’s biggest weaknesses was also one of his main
traits, his love for his family would end up being his downfall, but also held him
together for many years emotionally before his capture.
Machiavellianism :Escobar also had the cardinal trait of Machiavellianism, which
showed with how he wanted to not only become the largest drug lord in Colombia,
he also wanted to be president, and the saviour of the people who adored him.
Escobar would murder people in brutal ways just to send messages to people that
he had to do whatever needed to be done to win, which is Machiavellianism in
essence.

Learning Outcomes

I have learned a few new phrases through this documentary such as Mystique,Riddled with
bullets,Smokescreen,Illicit, Albeit,Oust,Marked man which will significantly help me to
communicate effectively and appropriately in real life situation.It also helped me to develop
greater confidence and proficiency in the use of language skills necessary for social and
academic purpose.The project not only helped me to use English effectively for study
purpose across the curriculum but also helped me to develop and integrate the use of the four
language skills i.e. Reading, Listening,Speaking and Writing.It heightened my awareness of
correct usage of English grammar in writing and speaking.Overall, it improved my language
skill of English both in terms of fluency and comprehensibility.
Conclusion

Overall, the portrait of Escobar was ambivalent.In Colombia his legacy touches
nearly everyone ,but for some he was a Colombian Robin Hood while others see his
story as a cautionary tale.The project has been very helpful in all ways. I am able to
analyse the character of the king of cocaine because of this project.It helped me to
develop the ability to be original and creative in interpreting opinions. Furthermore,
my objective of enhancing my vocabulary is accomplished by learning various
terms which will act as raw building blocks that I can use to express my thoughts
and ideas.

List of resources
 https://youtu.be/A39HaHUjN5M
 wikipedia.org/wiki/Pablo_Escobar
 britannica.com/biography/Pablo-Escobar
 allthatsinteresting.com/pablo-escobar