Out of Captivity is 451 pages, plus sixteen pages of photos of their prison camps and families, but well worth every page if you’re looking for a real life story of survival. Marc Gonsalves, Keith Stansell, and Tom Howes kept daily journals during their more than five years in captivity. Those journals were crucial to remember the daily details of their 20-hour marches through treacherous terrain and starvation at the hands of the Colombian rebel group, the FARC. Their co-author Gary Brozek helped them transcribe those diaries into an easy to read chronicle so that by the end, I really felt like I knew the men – their personalities, their opinions, and how they would react to certain questions. Plus, reading the book was a great way to learn about the politics affecting Colombia and the global drug trade.
Marc Gonsalves, Keith Stansell and Tom Howes – after and before they were freed from the FARC in Colombia
Click here to read more about their book, Out of Captivity: Surviving 1,967 Days in the Colombian Jungle.
This website has more information on the documentary, Held Hostage in Colombia.
-Ariana
I agree with much of the previous two comments. I’m not surprised by the political opinions of the guests, but I did find it ironic that the one man mentioned that he believed that God had a direct role in their rescue, right after discussing the frightful ignorance of the FARC soldiers.
Also, the assertion that legalizing drugs would strengthen FARC is completely illogical. Legalizing cocaine would immediately sap their revenue stream. Legitimate companies would be able to undercut the FARC’s prices from day one, the FARC (being an illegal organization) would be helpless to counter. The War on Drugs only strengthens illegal trade and wastes taxpayer money.
From a public health perspective, it is much easier for regulators to control and regulate legitimate business than black markets (while also extorting revenues). Look at our own tobacco industry and the success of the non-smoking movement. Heavy taxation, controlled advertising, and other deterring measures are in place, yet still a black market for tobacco is a non-issue.
This sounded more like a book promo tour than an actual interview. Instead of feeding cues to the authors to move their narrative forward, why not actually question their thesis? Why should coca and cocaine production be illegal? What is the point in destabilizing the government of Columbia by forcing them to be a colony of American commerce? Why no discussion of the training of the Colombia army by the U.S. and especially why no discussion of the special forces and other American troops operating in Colombia without markings on their uniforms indicating they are U.S. troops, no names, no insignias, no accountability.
Bob Edwards this was the most softball interview I’ve ever heard. You are very intelligent man, I can only reach 2 conclusions, you were forced to do this PR puff piece for the DEA/CIA because of commitments of NPR, or you or a family member have recently been arrested for something and this was used to coerce you into producing this heroic crap.
Colombia is a complicated country, some background on both that and the longterm American involvement with Colombia due to the CIA’s control of economic interests in South America as well as the tools of control offered by the War On Drugs and the DEA are all necessary in order to understand how the FARC came to be and why they do what they do. I have no love of the FARC, the DEA or the CIA they are manifestations of the same evil that all people carry in their soul, if you cannot hold a mirror before those wish to make themselves into chameleons, then why don’t you just become a disc jockey and play music all day on your show?
I was very disappointed and hope you do better in the future.
I found the interview informative and felt sympathy with these men’s sufferings. Kidnapping and oppressive captivity are abhorrent.
I wish Bob had asked the probing questions I used to hear from him on NPR:
1) How does your capture and imprisonment compare with that of the “unlawful enemy combatants” held by the US Government at Guantánamo Bay?
2) You express disappointment that your captors were not extradited to the U.S. for trial and punishment. What’s your reason for thinking that kidnapping of Americans be treated differently from kidnapping of other people? Do you think that U.S. law should be enforced outside this country in that manner? Wouldn’t that violate Colombian sovereignty?
3) Was your role in Colombia similar to that of mercenaries? [They were Northrup Grumman contractors working for the U.S. military inside of Colombia.]
Without detracting from the horror of their abduction, listeners could yet have been reminded that they were not simply tourists or on a humanitarian mission, but were actively participating in military operations.
Still, a fascinating and educational interview.