Fernando Garavito (1944-2010) was a well-known and highly respected newspaper columnist from Bogotá, Colombia. He was forced into exile after publishing a biography in 2002 detailing the links between Colombia’s drug cartels, right-wing paramilitary groups, and the then-candidate and current President, Alvaro Uribe Velez.
After fleeing to the United States with his family, Garavito found work teaching in Maine, but by mid-2003 the family was in desperate economic straits and inquiries back home revealed it was still not safe to return to Colombia. It was at that time that Garavito was referred to the International Cities of Asylum project. This led to sponsorship by PEN New Mexico, with support from Lannan Foundation, and Garavito and his family relocated to Santa Fe.
In 2006, Garavito joined the faculty at University of New Mexico as a lecturer and Artist-in-Residence in the Department of Latin American Studies. He died in October 2010.