The European tour

This week Colombian president Alvaro Uribe is visiting Europe, in what it's been called "the European tour". This "tour" actually only comprises two countries, Spain and Italy. Yes, it's kinda crappy a tour. That's what happens when you are a president and you do very little about the human rights violations in your country: nobody wants you as a visitor.

So, you might be wondering: how come Uribe is going to be a guest of honor in Spain? Spain is an obvious choice given that Spanish groups own pretty much what is worthy in Colombia: communications, banks, natural resources. President Uribe will be hosted by President Zapatero and the Kings of Spain. But those gatherings are only a formality. The important meeting will be next Wednesday, in a breakfast with all the CEOs of managerial groups in Spain which own (or are planning to own) a piece of Colombia.

The choice of Italy seems less obvious. The diplomatic relationships between the countries are practically inexistent. There are no big Italian companies in Colombia and unlike other southamerican countries, Colombia did not have a large mass of Italian immigration. I see two reasons for Uribe's visit to Italy: the Vatican and Berlusconi. Indeed, Uribe will spend most of his two days in Italy visiting Vatican city and the Colombian priests who happen to be influential there. Not a surprise, given his ultraconservative profile.

Uribe and Berlusconi share so many things that the topic well deserves a series of posts. I don't know what it's worse: a Southamerican president that reminds us of the most incompetent European leader, or an European president that behaves as the most populist third-world president. Both are right-wing guys, extremely popular and populist. They have little respect for the courts and judges in charge of the corruption cases related to them. In fact, an ideal scenario for them would be a world without courts. Both Uribe and Berlusconi were disappointed when Obama got into office.

This is Uribe proudly showing the latest achievement of Colombian diplomacy: Barack Obama's autograph. (Not a joke, really.)

I think Urbe's visit will be largely ignored in Italy, a country in which news from Southamerica are scarce and uninteresting. Here only Chávez appears into main headlines. Perhaps Italian media will only comment on President Uribe's weird habit of giving away Colombian citizenship certificates as he travels around the world. (Yes, Uribe has a very strange definition of 'souvenir') As of next Friday, I will share citizenship with Letizia Moratti, mayor of Milan. How about that?