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Ingrid Betancourt – a Heroine Homecoming

If the "plane Ingrid Betancourt implementation touched down on French soil in the course of this afternoon they can expect to be welcomed," is home "as a heroine.

Simply put, Betancourt has become a symbol of endurance in France during their years of captivity and the statements it has made since her release, only their stature added.

The reports started filtering through on Wednesday afternoon that Ingrid had been dismissed from here more than six years of captivity and France had what might be only as his own or Diana Kennedy moment means.

The news had many people glued to their screens as the story was later confirmed and published the first pictures. There were reports of people "," weep with joy "and comments from a" general sense of relief "for Betancourt and her family. In fact, were the words of the French Prime Minister François Fillion used.

was regularly interrupted programming on both the major national TV channels, experts dragged in its analysis, and there were blow-by-blow accounts of the six plus years of Betancourt spent time as a hostage of leftist rebels in Colombia motion of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia or FARC .

It is not difficult to understand why Betancourt then something like a national heroine here in France. Since she was first kidnapped in 2002 while campaigning for the presidency of Colombia in a Farc-controlled area of that country's fate is never far from the news.

Her two children – recently in Paris – have been tireless campaigners for the release of their mother, as her sister.

There were marches, demonstrations, vigils and appeals by celebrities for their release in the past six years. Large posters have her face from the entrances of dozens of French city and town halls – especially hanging Paris.

Although there is not always the headlines in the national press or on television since it constantly behind the scenes pressure by successive French governments for their release. And a sustained media campaign has been.

Before this week's events, it is probably hard to imagine that people would in any other European country so easily made the connection between Betancourt, FARC and Colombia.

And to a large part of the campaign for their freedom has been increased, if the current French president, Nicolas Sarkozy, the unusual step of their release that one of his foreign policy goals when he first came to office took place in May last year.

He backed up that promise by two broadcast appeals directly to the FARC leadership is sending his foreign minister, Bernard Kouchner, to Colombia and under medical 'plane on standby here in France ready to leave at any moment.

France might not ultimately have been directly involved in their future release, but had played Betancourt gratitude for the role of the country was of the first statements she made shortly evident from the asphalt after their release.

She also thanked the former French President Jacques Chirac, and one of his prime ministers and their close personal friend, Dominique de Villepin.

Neither man can be counted as one of the most popular man Sarkozy. On the contrary, de Villepin is currently in the Clearstream affair, in which she claimed that he tried, the character of Sarkozy ahead of the center-right Union pour un Mouvement Populaire (Union entangled defame for a Popular Movement, UMP) party nomination a candidate for the presidential election in 2007.

But differences aside, every person has undoubtedly played an important role in sustaining the campaign for her release very much alive.

French interest may also be declared in the family relationship Betancourt in France. She has two French-Colombian nationality through her first marriage, and her own family of French origin. She and her sister, Astrid, spent many of her formative years in Paris, where they were placed educated, and Betancourt completed her studies at the prestigious Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris (commonly known as Sciences Po ") in the French capital.

Of course, it has also the inevitable backlash against the near universal coverage for Betancourt release. Some mean – maybe, spirited people – more than the number of column inches and air time given to the complaint history since Wedesday. And of course, been in this age of cars desperately find all news about a new "angle" it seems to be little else to make headlines.

But the long and the short of it is that the French do not care. This is a story that they are following for many years now. "Betancourt" and "Farc" have probably much more to the average person on the street here in France than in the rest of Europe, just because the story is meant never gone away.

Those who complain as the radio "phone-ins, to the amount of air time given the history, in a sense, simply adds to the story by a new – albeit perhaps a bit tasteless – pointing angle to that Betancourt knew the risks, she was involved in, predominantly, if they used the FARC-controlled area of Colombia.

Last year's Socialist candidate have in the presidential elections, Segolene Royal defeated, probably not done many favors on the right or the left, after that Sarkozy was milking Betancourt release for all the media publicity it is worth proposing.

While it is certainly true that Sarkozy was able to do with an increase in his approval ratings – it's currently hovering in the mid 30's level – he was hogging the limelight much less than he did when he helped secure the release of Bulgarian nurses and doctor from a Libyan jail at the beginning of his presidency.

The admiration for Betancourt in France deeply and there is no doubt that the country has its own views as a modern heroine, especially for the way they handled themselves during their captivity, and of humility and dignity she showed since its release.

She has not the world forget that there are still 700 hostages by the FARC and their statement that "it's time for me to thank the French, to tell them I admire them, that I am proud, French and's," guarantees that welcome "home" they so richly deserve.

Johnny Summerton is a Paris-based broadcaster, writer and journalist specializing in politics and sport. Visit his website for a look at some of the stories making headlines here in France http://www.persiflagefrance.com

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