David Bojanini, honorary member of the Board of Directors of Proantioquia, spoke this Thursday with the priest Francisco de Roux, president of the Truth Commission, on the role of the business community in the clarification of the truth of the armed conflict, in a talk moderated by journalist Ana María Cano.
The conversation was part of the cycle ‘Peace is everyone’s business’, by Comfama.
(Read also: The memories of another political extermination, that of the ¡A Luchar!)
The priest De Roux began by answering what the truth is for and what it can be for entrepreneurs. He said that in Colombia we have experienced a tragedy and “unfortunately we continue to live it.” Noted that there are about 10,000 armed men in illegal groups and the murder of leaders persists. “We have to solve this problem,” said the priest.
He recalled that the armed conflict “exceeds by much, much” the ravages that the coronavirus pandemic has brought. “This pandemic of violence also needs a deepening of the truth” so that the country can get out of what it is experiencing. He added that they are looking for a truth that leads us to unite and not to point us out, stigmatize us or continue to feed revenge.
For his part, Bojanini said he agreed with the father. “In the first place, the truth serves each one from their point of life,” said the businessman. He pointed out that, first of all, it helps the victims to heal. Regarding businessmen, he said that they play a role in the development of the country, but also when referring to the causes of the conflict “we all have some responsibility for that.”
(You may be interested in: The questions that guide the Truth Commission in Antioquia)
“We have to be very aware as businessmen of what we can do better so that people prefer to work legally,” said Bojanini, regarding the persistence of the conflict in some regions of the country.
For Bojanini, capitalism must respond to the need for well-being for all, because otherwise, those who do not have opportunities will be encouraged to “choose illegality”, which is linked to the violence that the country is experiencing.
Next, Cano asked about the impacts of the conflict on the business community, to which Bojanini replied that “The conflict definitely affects investment and formal business a lot.” He noted that the crime that most commonly affects free enterprise is extortion that “continues” today.
In addition, he said that this is “very sad” because when it comes to entrepreneurs, there is a great diversity from small, formal, informal, rural, urban businesses. “Entrepreneurs are not an organization in the general sense of the word, we are many organizations”added.
For the businessman, the conflict has prevented entrepreneurs from distributing their products in all regions and that this ultimately affects the poorest people in the country.
… there is security for property, but the tragedy is that it is not understood that what originates markets are people
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Regarding the contribution of the business community to the clarification of the truth, about which Cano asked Bojanini and De Roux, the priest responded that if the businessmen do not participate in the construction of the story of the Truth Commission, the result “will have an absence very deep”.
He said that the business community has an “absolutely necessary” vision of the country and the capacity for leadership “that no one else has in Colombia” because they have a long-term vision like businessmen, while “politicians play 4 years.” “This is about building a future with an ability to see precisely to have the audacity to take risks,” he said.
He also pointed out that, although the Commission still has more questions than answers, proactive leadership is needed in the country. “Development is not companies, development is people,” said the priest De Roux, but added that this is not working. “There is security for companies, there is security for property, but the tragedy is that it has not been understood that what originates markets are people,” questioned the president of the Truth Commission.
(We suggest you read: In just 11 days there were five massacres that left 30 victims in the country)
De Roux said that the country is like a peacock, which while opening its feathers shows its development and potential, but when he looks at the legs he realizes that “he is on a very fragile reality” and feels ashamed. He also said that The country needs a transformation “seriously, precisely so that markets can open up”, but a more proactive and thorough attitude from the business community is required.
Bojanini responded to De Roux that he agrees that we all have a responsibility to build a better society. “The private company throughout history has been evolving,” he said, and that the issue of a company having as its main objective maximizing profits “is commanded to collect.” “The greatest wealth that a business project can have is that it is useful to humanity,” said the former president of Grupo Sura.
In the country, private interests have historically prevailed over groups, Bojanini pointed out, both in business and in politics. “I do believe that this new business leadership is very important,” he said.
On the other hand, he said that entrepreneurs in regions like Antioquia, faced with the problems, have tried to invest more, to participate in the solutions. “I believe that to the extent that there is more formal business and that more work is done to carry out activities that benefit the whole of society, we could begin to see this illegal activity diminished,” reflected Bojanini.
“Many businessmen were scared by the Havana agreements, thinking that there was going to be a witch hunt here, that the person who had to pay extortion was going to be considered a promoter of paramilitarism, but it is already very clear that this is not the case”Bojanini also said.
He also said that the companies that contributed to the formation of armed groups have to answer for this, but that they cannot pigeonhole all the business community there. In addition, he pointed out that “many businessmen see the Truth Commission wrongly” believing that they are going to point them out there. He also said that, for example, a rancher who dispossessed land or an illegal miner who displaced communities “is not a businessman, he is a criminal.”
(More of your interest: On September 30, a new member of the Truth Commission will be known)
The world is ready to start thinking about the legalization of drugs
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–Lessons from the conflict
Ana María Cano asked why, after six decades of conflict, what are the lessons that remain and what is the role of the business community, to which Bojanini said that the answer is to “understand” and ask “how we could have done better” .
“A company that projects itself more to society, that takes care of natural resources, that is equitable in the generation of wealth for all the people who participate in its project” This is what the sector should aim for, according to Bojanini.
For him, without “noise” such as drug trafficking it would be easier to build peace in the country. “The world is already prepared to start thinking about the legalization of drugs,” said Bojanini, and that this “will not increase consumption, but it can reduce the violence that is around”, as well as the destruction of forests .
(You may be interested in: Harsh stories of mine victims to the Truth Commission)
Later, Cano asked the priest De Roux what he would ask the Antioquia business community, and he replied that he has a lot of confidence in this sector, which has led the economic development of the country. These companies “had the audacity to persevere” in the context of the conflict, he said, but “Faced with the crossroads facing the country,” he asked them to realize “that we are in Colombia.”
“We are making decisions in a country with an intense internal conflict that continues and continues, that diminishes enthusiasm, that creates a kind of lack of faith in what we have among ourselves and that disrupts business development,” said priest De Roux.
He also said that he is concerned about drug trafficking and that “as Colombians we have not wanted to change this.” He said that this problem is also smuggling, arms trafficking, illegal mining and that its effects persist in the neighborhoods of the country’s cities.
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David Bojanini and Francisco de Roux spoke about building trust with the business community.
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Comfama (screenshot).
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“Drug trafficking is the great multiplier of aggregate demand in informal sectors”, said Father De Roux, which “reaffirms the informal economy not to formalize”, despite the fact that it feeds the income of the banks. In addition, which is the great incentive for not registering land in Colombia. For this reason, he insisted that the long-term vision of businessmen is important, that it speaks to the ear of the short-term vision of politicians.
On the other hand, Bojanini said that “if there is no trust there is no peace building, and if there is no truth, there is no trust”. He pointed out that if the FARC “are not willing to tell the truth, it will be very difficult for us to achieve that reconciliation.” He said that he is a “firm believer in peace”, but that its implementation belongs to all Colombians, and not only to those who participated in the conflict, but those who did participate have “enormous responsibilities”, including recognition of their actions. .
For Bojanini it is clear that the goal is non-repetition, and that although there are things that people can be ashamed of, it is necessary to show regret about what was done and a commitment that it will not happen again. But He also drew attention to corruption in the political sector that creates “more poverty, more inequity and fuels conflict.” He said that “they are also the most historically responsible for this conflict we have had in Colombia.”
Faced with a question about how to restore trust once the responsibilities of the private sector in the conflict are established, Father De Roux began by clarifying that one cannot make the mistake of pointing out “the private sector” as if it were homogeneous and had the same responsibility.
To respond, he cited the episode that occurred last week, when a Sumapaz peasant woman told Farc Senator Sandra Ramírez that to forgive she needed to know the truth, not a general truth, but a specific one about what she suffered. “This happens at all levels, the truth for it to generate trust must be very sincere, and a general recognition does not work for the victims”, said.
Father De Roux said that there were businessmen convinced that the only way to end the guerrilla was to finance paramilitarism, and others who were forced to contribute money, without the intention of supporting the criminal apparatus, and thus multiple cases that must be recognized. “If you do not tell the truth, really what you did and what happened, far from creating trust increases trust,” he said.
Finally, he asked the entrepreneurs for “time” to sit down and talk. He also asked them to be critical, but to come and speak with the Commission, as has happened with the Army. “It is a difficult truth, but it is a possible truth,” he told them.
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