Colombia has the oldest armed conflict in Latin America. A 36
year old Colombian doesn't understand the concept of his/her
country without war. Every 15 days 346 people die because of the
armed conflict. In 2007, six kidnappings occurred every two days.
However, the nation is making strenuous efforts to stop violence.
Colombia has a Guinness Record for the world's largest peace
movement against war. In 2008, 1,042 rebels handed over their
weapons.
Initiative set up a communications movement called Pacifico to
support and promote peace. The hub of the peaceful campaign was
www.proyectopacifico.com. This is where Colombians could post their
simple ideas to help Colombia live in peace. These included: "ask
for forgiveness", "remember to breathe", "call your mother more
often", "don't shout". Initiative approached leading advertisers in
Colombia and persuaded them to transform the ideas into media spots
so the message of peace could be spread. Leading media owners
supported the project by giving free ad space. Initiative garnered
support from the Francisco Santos, vice-president of Colombia as
well as key media moguls.
More than 60 media owners in TV, radio, newspapers, magazines,
outdoor and digital supported Pacifico with free spots, with a
value of around $US 700,000. Around 1,000 simple ideas have been
posted in the page. The campaign also managed to unite media owners
and advertisers in a single cause.