Recommended & Related Places:
Bolivar Square, Museum of Independence, Liévano Palace (Bogota Town Hall, its northeastern column has a plaque commemorating the Palace of Justice Siege, and another plaque dedicated to the missing), Cavalry School.
Recommendations:
The easiest way to reach these points is through public transport "Transmilenio" bus in "J72" or "J70". Get off at the Gold Museum station then go down Carrera 7ma south to Calle 11. You will arrive at a large square called "Square de Bolivar", easily recognizable by the statue of Simon Bolivar located in its center. Diagonal to the northeast corner of the square is the Museum of Independence, whose house served as the state headquarters during the siege, this is where survivors were led to and subsequently subjected to enforced disappearance. Opposite the museum, across Carrera 7ma, is the Palace of Justice built upon the original which was demolished after the siege in 1985. Diagonal to the Palace of Justice in front of the facade of the museum that faces Calle 11 is the Cathedral of Colombia. Opposite to the cathedral, on the other side of the square, is Liévano Palace, home of the mayor of Bogota, and on the southern side of the Square is the national Capitol, which is located behind the Presidential Palace, the seat of the presidency. Public transport is the best way to travel through Bogota and avoid traffic congestion. Visit Bogotá as any big city you know: Be careful with traffic and keep an eye on your belongings. We hope you learn a little more about our history and reflect on events like these and their relation to human rights.
Places Related to the Case:
- Palace of Justice: The current building replaces the ruins left by the fire that sparked during the assault deployed by government forces in 1985. It has the particularity that what is observed from Bolivar Square is not its front but its rear: the current courthouse is behind the Square, so if you want to see its façade you must surround the block and see it from calle 12.
- Presidential Palace "Palacio de Nariño": Home of the presidency of Colombia. It lies between calle 7 y calle 9, and Carrera 7ma y Carrera 8va, one block from Bolivar Square. From there Belisario Betancur, President in 1985, rejected a telephone conversation with Alfonso Reyes Echandía, president of the Supreme Court held hostage in the Palace, and refused to order a ceasefire to open negotiations with the guerrilla group.
- Casa del Florero: The place where survivors were brought alive by government forces during the siege. Several witnesses have stated that survivors were initially interrogated and subsequently tortured and subjected to enforced disappearance. They were allegedly taken to military garrisons such as the Cavalry School, the battalion Charry Solano and the Infantry School, where interrogation, torture, murder and disappearances allegedly occurred.
- Southern Cemetery: Many victims of the Palace of Justice Siege were buried in mass graves, including several M-19 guerrilla members that attacked the Palace. Witnesses and investigators hypothesize that some of the missing persons were buried here after being killed or died as a result of the tortures. Through DNA analysis, in 2001, it was established that one of the graves held the body of Ana Rosa Castiblanco, missing in the courthouse when she was 7 months pregnant. However there are no remains of his son, who at the time was about to be born.
Check a map if you want to know the geographical location of these places and how to reach them.
