Former British prime minister Margaret Thatcher has sent a letter to outgoing Colombian President Alvaro Uribe commending him on his "strong leadership" during his eight years in office.
"Under his strong leadership, the forces of law and order have fought the terrorists and criminals who did much to weaken the government of his country and sow fear in the lives of many of his countrymen," the letter reads.
Thatcher also highlighted the economic growth that has occurred during Uribe's presidency and commended his achievement in building a "more stable and prosperous Colombia."
Finally, the former British leader assured Uribe that his political legacy will provide a "firm base" for President-elect Juan Manuel Santos with which to "continue the success story of Colombia."
Thatcher lead the conservative party as Britain's first female Prime Minister from 1979 to 1990 during which time she was known for her hard line policies towards the economy, trade unions and terrorism. She remains one Britain's most influential post-war leaders.
President Uribe hands over office to President-elect Santos on August 7.
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Comments (13)
turbobore
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... Now this is praise from a truely legitimate source. One great leader praising another. |
rich
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... 1 great leader? Notorious as a warmonger Famous for introducing the polltax The mother of a son who financed a militairy coup in Equatorial Gunea Famous for NOT taxing the rich, but taxing the working class Yes a great leader like Alvaro |
rich
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... Oh and btw.. Maggie Thatcher has alzheimers disease since 3 years. I quote: the world leader once feared and admired -- as humbled by memory lapses so severe she doesn't even know that her longtime husband has died. So i doubt if she has any clue who that little leader from Locombia is. I wouldnt be proud when i was praised by some leader who has dementia :) |
rich
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... Also im curious which press agency made this article? Can you give me the source from this article? |
cococo
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... OK enough f the tabloid contributions. I am Anglo Irish and under Margaret Thatcher the terror of the IRA was met with brutal force which laid the foundations for the Norther Ireland Peace Accord which was signed under the following administration of John Major and further solidified under Tony Blair. It easy to throw a broad sweep of criticism of any leader for example Blair and the war in Iraq, but Blair's greates achievement was in his contributions to peace in Norther Ireland and I am very heartened to see that Santos and Blair have talked at length about a negotiated peace in other situations. Margaret thatcher had many reprehensible policies but like Alvaro Uribe I believe that she was a necessary leader for her country at a certain time in history & her influence is still felt today and many argue that the UK is a better place because of her. I believe Uribe is a similar leader and his influence and achievements will shape Colombia and how Colombians think for many years into the future. By the way Margaret Thatcher currently resides next door tot he Colombian Ambassador in London and her daughter is a huge fan of Colombia, traveling here on vacation and enjoying our culture and hospitality. |
rich
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... All very nice, but explain me when her own daughter writes. I quote: Carol Thatcher first noticed the symptoms of dementia in 2000. Since then Lady Thatcher's memory has deteriorated further and Carol describes how she has reminded her a number of times that her husband Denis, died in 2003. They had been married for more than 50 years. She describes the poignant moment, "Were we all there?" Lady Thatcher asked. Although she lives in her London home, her daughter reveals that the former premier now thinks more often of her childhood home in Lincolnshire Explain me how this woman with alzheimers disease can write such a letter about mr Uribe? This smells fishy She thinks her late husband is still alive sometimes, but she knows everything about Colombia and his president???? Give me a break That's the point of my comment i think this is a made up story . |
Brendan Rayment
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... Rich your point is well inferred and your knowledge of Mrs Thatcher’s condition astounding! Sufferer of dementia often have very clear and lucid moments and I would not be at all surprised if she instructed one of her assistants to compose a letter to the president in one of those moments. As a sufferer of dementia is every word she utters to be cast aside as improbable and meaningless. I do not know if it is true or not but your presumption that it is not because she suffers from Dementia is somewhat insulting, a little naïve and as so often is the case infused with the intoxicating aroma of cynicism. |
Eazy
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... When Thatcher suffers from dementia it is far from insulting to state that and this seems to be the case. Rich's comments are therefor valid and his cynicism far from intoxicating. Whether or not Thatcher has clear moments basically is irrelevant. How are we to know, when she is clear and when not? She's clear when it suites us? We can safely say that every President has had his achievements. Even Hitler was responsible for some positive changes (e.g. child support, highways). That doesn't make every President an authority on good or bad. The letter send to Uribe is a letter send by mrs. Thatcher as a (mentally ill) private person and therefor has no extra weight and as such is not something to brag about. |
cococo
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... Why don’t you read what I wrote!!! I said it’s insulting to say that someone who has dementia can not make valid statements. I know people with dementia and as I wrote above they often have very lucid moments, depending on the severity of their illness. Mrs Thatcher was a hugely important leader on the World’s stage and even as a private, old and ill person what she makes comment on still makes headlines and matters to a lot of people and she is still courted by a lot of leaders in the world today. Santos paid her a visit on his recent visit to London. Her brand of politics especially concerning economic policy are still very relevant in the UK today, & admired by any leaders. Why do you bring Hitler into this debate? What on earth does he have to do with either Thatcher or Uribe, both of whom were democratically elected. Hitler was an evil tyrant, but then I hope I don’t need to start pointing out what makes Hitler different in this forum. I presume I am debating with educated and intelligent people. By the way I hated much of what Thatcher stood for, but I still respect her many of her achievements and especially how she dealt with the IRA and allowed subsequent British prime ministers to achieve peace in Northern Ireland. I hope and believe that Uribe will have the same legacy in our own struggle with those who commit violent acts on their fellow Colombians. |
rich
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... For the last time. leave the discussion about if she was good or bad. Fact remains the woman has dementia in a severe stage Fact remains that you never see or hear any statements from mrs Thatcher in the english media. For me this is a publicitystunt from the colombian government to misguide the people to show people how gooooood mr Uribe is. That mr Santos brought her a visi doesn't say anything and i don't think they had a severe discussion about Colombian politics. Like i asked before and i'll ask any editor from colombiareports. Where does this article come from??? Was it a Colombian press agency? Was it reuters or smth like that? My point is that a lot of Colombians take everything for granted what their media says and believe me independent and honest journalism in Colombia is a farce. I really want to know the source of this article, cause i really think it's a made up story. And if it's not i'm the first one to apologize, ... There's smth fishy about this article |
Pandora P
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... Rich, if you click on the blue underlined writing it will take you to the source article from Elespectador.com. |
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