Pubdate: Mon, 16 Jul 2001 Source: The Post and Courier (SC) Copyright: 2001 Evening Post Publishing Co. Contact: http://www.charleston.net/index.html Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/567 Author: Editorial Staff COLOMBIA DESERVES A BREAK The Copa America soccer championship is so important to Colombia's morale that when the South American Soccer Federation threatened to cancel it on security grounds, President Andres Pastrana went on television wearing the national team's blue-and-yellow soccer jersey. He declared: "We are going to show the world and our brothers in the Americas that Colombia is more than the bloodshed and the attacks they see on the news." Holding the championship, which, in Latin America, is second only to the world's most popular sporting event, the World Cup, is a victory in itself. Prior to Wednesday's opening game in Cali, the championship was canceled twice and postponed once. President Pastrana appealed to Colombia's South American brother and sister nations to show their solidarity by taking part. But the response was half-hearted at best. Several of the top players refused to come to Colombia. Argentina, currently top of the soccer ladder in Latin America, opted out. The championship in Colombia was first in jeopardy last month when three terrorist bombs were planted in Bogota, Cali and Medellin with the obvious intention of scaring off the organizers, the South American Soccer Federation. It was called off entirely when a Colombian soccer official was kidnapped by guerrillas. But he reappeared, explaining that he had been the victim of a random kidnapping and personally pleaded with the federation not to call off the championship. President Pastrana has named the championship the "Peace Cup" and has provided 20,000 police, army sharpshooters and bomb-sniffing dogs to protect participants and spectators. It's a pity that Argentina, which has had a taste of the terrorism that Colombia is going through, failed to show solidarity with a nation that is literally under siege. South America should have united against violence by supporting Colombia in its battle against left- and right-wing extremists and drug traffickers. When he put on the national soccer team's jersey, President Pastrana's promised, "We are going to replace the bombs with goals." May his wish come true. A successful championship could provide just the morale boost that the ravaged country needs. - --- MAP posted-by: Kirk