The cop who chased Pablo Escobar and negotiated peace for Colombia | #Random4 🇨🇴
Channel: Cee Rock
Date: 2018-09-15

General #OscarNaranjo is the former Colombian police force chief. In this episode he explains the myths behind being considered a drug-producing nation. He reveals why Colombia is an example in combating drug-trafficking.

According to Naranjo, #ElChapo Guzman is "less calculating but more violent than #PabloEscobar".

His expertise in fighting subversives, and drug traffickers, have made him the to go security advisor to any government in the world.

Location: 1721 Massachusetts Avenue in NW Washington D.C.
https://bit.ly/2QxPX3M

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#R4presentsTheGeneral    


GEN. NARANJO
The biggest difference between a hispanic narco vs. a north american or european drug trafficker is that in Latin America they want to accumulate money, political power then take over ... E

EPISODE 1: THE GENERAL

VO
Oscar Naranjo was the head of the Colombian police forces... But he’s not just a retired cop.

VO
He is a robust weapon of justice that’s collided head-on with Latin America’s most barbaric criminal organizations, including Pablo Escobar's...

VO
He’s a real badass!

VO
And look, this may sound like a cliche, but General Naranjo strongly believes that words are the best weapon against violence... I mean the sat down at the negotiating table with former guerrilla group, FARC, during the historic “Peace Talks”, a series of discussions that made headlines around the world -  ultimately ending the region’s longest armed conflict. A big win for his country and the region. Although, many Colombians will not agree.

VO
What else?? Mmmm.... He was President Santos VP from 2017-2018.

VO
Oh! And many call him the world’s best cop!

VO
He’s kind of a big deal I’d say... Right Jaime?

JAIME MORENO:
Cocaine is not the only illicit drug. When it comes to drug trafficking does it seem unfair to you when the US points at Colombia? 

GEN. NARANJO
The world must change its metrics around this evaluation. Yes, we are still a drug producer, but we have the lowest levels of violence compared to four decades ago. What happens to our democratic system despite our problems around drugs? We are not cornered as a result of a threat from the cartels. What happens in producing countries and their struggle to have strong and reliable government? Colombia is an example of this transformation. What I’ve said in Washington is; It is not enough to look for illicit crops. We must check if we are able to contain the offer by applying measures such as drug interdiction.

JAIME MORENO:
Because of TV series, when people discuss drug trafficking, the reference in the US is Pablo Escobar. Was he really the most difficult narco you chased? 

GEN. NARANJO:
I would say that he was the most violent, the most bloodthirsty. We estimate that Pablo Escobar murdered at least five thousand Colombians during the last three years of his criminal activity. We consider him a monster. There are other drug traffickers who are smarter and less violent but more difficult to capture than Pablo Escobar.

JAIME MORENO:
Such as?

GEN. NARANJO
 Jhony Cano of the Norte del Valle cartel. Everyone knew he was the leader of that organization. He was on the run for at least 15 years until we captured him.

GEN. NARANJO:
In Mexico, El Chapo Guzmán is another kind of criminal myth. I would say that he’s less calculating than Escobar, more violent than Escobar, and more corrupting than Escobar.

GEN. NARANJO:
I don’t think anyone’s made it this far...

JAIME MORENO:
You’re supposed to be an expert in toppling organized structures.

GEN. NARANJO:
In Colombia we have drug traffickers but those criminals do not threaten the institutions. They no longer put at risk our democratic system. No matter how powerful a drug trafficker is today, he knows that he can’t take over. Colombia closed the doors of power to guerrillas and narcos.

JAIME MORENO:
Is it easier to fight narcos than guerrillas?
 
GEN. NARANJO:
I think they are two very different phenomena. In the end, what we have done with the guerrillas, through an agreement that put an end to this conflict with the FARC, was to recognize that there was an armed conflict that was fueled and that was really financed by drug trafficking. The big difference was that guerillas trafficked drugs to survive, while the narcos....

JAIME MORENO:
This just got complicated...

GEN. NARANJO:
As I was saying, Narcos only expect to traffic drugs forever thinking that they can challenge the state.

JAIME MORENO:
Do you think the US government understands this?

GEN. NARANJO:
All the interlocutors with whom I have spoken recognize that Plan Colombia transformed the constitutionality of Colombia. And thanks to that plan today there is no possibility of a delinquent challenging that institution.