Stop on this stretch of pavement on Carrera Séptima. Here, on 9 April 1948, just after one in the afternoon, Jorge Eliécer Gaitán was fatally wounded. He was Colombia's most popular politician and the favourite for the 1950 presidential election.

1The crime

Gaitán had his law office in the Agustín Nieto building. He was going out to lunch with Plinio Mendoza Neira and other friends when a man shot him with a revolver. He died that same afternoon at the Clínica Central. He had meetings planned that day with several visitors, among them a young Cuban student called Fidel Castro.

The crowd chased the alleged killer, Juan Roa Sierra. A policeman pushed him into a pharmacy to protect him, but people forced their way in, beat him to death and dragged his body along the Séptima towards the presidential palace.

2The Bogotazo

The news set the city alight. Within hours, trams, churches, the old Palace of Justice and dozens of buildings in the centre were burning, and the revolt spread to other regions. Many historians date the start of a period of violence that marked Colombia for decades to that day.

Did Roa Sierra act alone? In 1978 the courts concluded that he did, for personal reasons. From the very first day other versions circulated, from a political plot to the involvement of foreign intelligence services, none of which has ever been proven.

Some witnesses even spoke of a second man who gave a signal before the shots and then melted into the crowd. Nobody ever identified him.

3What to look for

  • The memorial plaque on the building's façade.
  • Carrera Séptima, now pedestrianised, which filled with crowds that afternoon.
  • The way south: along this street Roa Sierra's body was dragged towards Plaza de Bolívar.
Plaque reading «Aquí cayó Jorge Eliécer Gaitán, caudillo del pueblo»
The plaque on Carrera Séptima recalls 9 April 1948.

Documented

Jorge Eliécer Gaitán was shot dead here on 9 April 1948; the alleged killer, Juan Roa Sierra, was lynched by the crowd.

Oral tradition

Theories about who masterminded the crime, from a political plot to foreign intelligence services, have circulated since 1948 but have never been proven.

Sources and credits

Arturo Alape, «El Bogotazo: memorias del olvido» (1983); Herbert Braun, «The Assassination of Gaitán: Public Life and Urban Violence in Colombia» (1985); Miguel Torres, «El crimen del siglo» (2006).

Photos:

  • Pedestrianised Carrera Séptima near Avenida Jiménez, with the San Francisco tower behind: Peter Angritt, CC BY-SA 4.0.
  • Plaque reading «Aquí cayó Jorge Eliécer Gaitán, caudillo del pueblo»: Juanfer81, CC BY-SA 3.0.

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