Obama, Santos, Shakira participate in land titling event

19:02, 17 April 2012

CARTAGENA. April 17. KAZINFOR In Cartagena, Colombia, President Obama joined Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos and Colombian pop singer Shakira (above) for an event giving formal land title to the Afro-Colombian descendants of the slaves who have lived there for centuries.

Shakira, who was born and raised in Barranquilla, Colombia, introduced the ceremony, the press service of the US Diplomatic Mission to Kazakhstan said.

"Giving you and so many Afro-Colombian communities title to this land is part of ending this nation's long conflict," President Obama said. "Not far from here, your ancestors were bought and sold. Going forward, Colombia can realize its full potential by empowering all of its people, no matter what you look like or where you come from."

The U.S. government has allocated $61 million for improving the quality of life in Colombia's indigenous communities and supporting land restitution efforts.

Shakira's Pies Descalzos Foundation supports early childhood education in Colombia.

Read more: http://iipdigital.usembassy.gov/

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