Not forgotten: Colombia’s surviving Korean War vets honored
At 92, Guillermo Rodríguez wears his military uniform loaded with decorations for fighting in the Korean War (1950-1953), as part of the 5,000-soldier troop sent by Colombia, the only Latin American country to heed the United Nations call.
He was a 22-year-old when he volunteered, began a three-month training course and crossed the Pacific Ocean to Korea where he arrived in January 1952 and fought for 22 months on the South Korean side with US-led forces after a surprise North Korean invasion.
Colombian veteran of the Korean War, Col. Guillermo Rodríguez, 92, holds photos of himself as a young man, and his wife, before leaving home to attend an Independence Day parade marking Colombia's independence from Spanish colonization, in Bogota, July 20, 2022. (AP Photo/Ivan Valencia)
Colombian veteran of the Korean War, Col. Guillermo Rodríguez, 92, says goodbye to his wife before heading out for the parade marking Colombia's independence from Spanish colonization, in Bogota, July 20, 2022. (AP Photo/Ivan Valencia)
Colombian veteran of the Korean War, Col. Guillermo Rodríguez, 92, holds a flag during an Independence Day parade marking Colombia's independence from Spanish colonization, in Bogota, July 20, 2022. (AP Photo/Ivan Valencia)
There he saw dozens of people die, including his friend Vladimir in an artillery attack. More than 140 Colombians died in the Korean War, another 400 were wounded, and dozens were reported missing. The Korean War left millions of people dead, injured or missing and destroyed much of the two Koreas. About 36,000 U.S. soldiers were also killed.
After surviving in distant lands, Rodríguez continued his military career in Colombia and reached the rank of colonel. The role of Colombian veterans in the Korean War has been forgotten by many in his native country. However, every July 20 they are honored in the annual military parade that commemorates independence from the Spanish crown.
"I learned what it is to fight, the misfortune of a war, what people suffer," said Rodríguez on the eve of the commemoration of the armistice, signed on July 27, 1953, which ended hostilities.
Soldiers give a hand to a Colombian veteran of the Korean War onto a vehicle prior to the start of an Independence Day parade marking Colombia's independence from Spanish colonization, in Bogota, July 20, 2022. (AP Photo/Ivan Valencia)
Colombian veterans of the Korean War salute during an Independence Day parade marking their independence from Spanish colonization, in Bogota, Colombia, July 20, 2022. (AP Photo/Ivan Valencia)
Colombian veterans of the Korean War, top row, from left; Sgt. 1st Class Alfonzo Chavez, 96; Jose Adonai Castilla, 88; Sgt. Alfonso Alvarez Vargas, 87; Jose Barut Celis, 88; and Cpl. Luis Maria Jimenez, 87; bottom row, from left; Col. Guillermo Guzman, 87; Luis Antonio Garcia, 97; Jose del Carmen Galvis, 89; Cpl. Luis Alfonso Gaitan, 90; and Alvaro Bernal, 91, pose for portraits in Bogota, July 20, 2022. (AP Photo/Ivan Valencia)
The Korean Peninsula remains technically in a state of war because the armistice that ended the fighting has yet to be replaced with a peace treaty.
Lead photo: Colombian veteran of the Korean War, Col. Guillermo Rodríguez, 92, adjusts his cap as he prepares to head out to an Independence Day parade marking Colombia's independence from Spanish colonization, in Bogota, July 20, 2022. (AP Photo/Ivan Valencia)