Colombian official invites Lloyd Ferguson to visit him

Colombia's trade commissioner says he appreciates the mayor of Hamilton's olive branch to him after an Ancaster councillor called the South American country "backwards." And he's also invited that councillor to visit him in Toronto.

This means a great deal to us.- AlvaroConcha, Colombian trade commissioner

Alvaro Concha, Colombian trade commissioner in Canada, told Fred Eisenberger in an email Thursday that he appreciated the mayor's "approach for handling the situation and kindness to send an apology. This means a great deal to us."

Eisenberger emailed Concha to soothe relations after Coun. Lloyd Ferguson made some controversial remarks about Colombia in a city hall committee meeting earlier this week.

Ferguson said that when he visited Colombia, the only wealthy people there were drug lords, and that chickens rode the buses and people sat on the roof, like in Romancing the Stone. It seemed like a "backwards country" for Hamilton to use as a benchmark.

When other councillors groaned, he said, "Lighten up, guys. It was supposed to be funny."

• Colombian official calls Lloyd Ferguson Bogota remarks 'ignorant'

Gil Penalosa, brother of Bogota mayor Enrique Penalosa and chair of World Urban Parks, took to Twitter to call Ferguson's remarks "ignorant."

"Great People of Hamilton Ontario deserve an apology for ignorant remarks by Councillor @clrFerguson," he tweeted. "Not funny; sad."

No apology

But Ferguson didn't apologize earlier this week, saying his statements mirrored his experience when he visited Colombia about 12 years ago.

"It's the only place in the world I've experienced where as I walked out ofthe hotel, the security guards would stop me with rifles and say 'You're not leaving the hotel,'" said Ferguson, who is the former head of Dufferin Construction.

Eisenberger issued a statement saying that "stereotyping cultures has no place in society today and certainly doesn't around the city council table. All councillors are responsible for their comments and behavior."

He also reiterated Hamilton's economic development ties, which since last year's Pan Am Games, have deepened.

Economic partnership

Last year, Hamilton, Niagara and Colombia announced a new information and communications technology partnership called "Bring IT On with Hamilton Niagara." Through the partnership, Hamilton and Niagara companies will tap into the Colombia market and Colombia companies can do the same here.

In March, Hamilton economic development officials are also hosting a "Why Colombia?" export forum.

In Eisenberger's statement, he told Concha that Hamilton "continues to enjoy a positive working relationship" with Colombia, and outlined some of the country's achievements.

Concha said he appreciated it. He also invited Ferguson to his Toronto office "discuss some of his concerns about Colombia."

"Even though it is unfortunate that stereotypes still play an important place in society, we are confident that Colombia is moving in the right direction, and that it will continue to have a progressive and forward thinking approach," he wrote.