Select clips of radio pieces I’ve enjoyed reporting:

N.N.: Los ríos de Colombia han sido un vertedero de cadáveres. En un pueblo, la gente los saca del agua y les hace un entierro digno. Pero la historia no termina ahí. Nadja Drost viajó a Puerto Berrío para investigar la extraña relación de este pueblo con los cadáveres sin nombre. Radio Ambulante, July, 2012. Winner of the Premio Simon Boívar, Colombia. (Report in Spanish)

Colombia’s no-name dead:  For decades,  the town of Puerto Berrio has received bodies, victims of the armed conflict, floating down the Magdalena River.  The town’s downstream position has given rise to a unique obsession where residents adopt and care for the dead. As compassion takes on competitive turns, the living come to expect favours from the dead. Dispatches, CBC Radio, February, 2012.

Ghost Towns: In Colombia,  drug-trafficking gangs that have emerged from the ashes of the paramilitary  are gaining strength, especially in the northern state of Córdoba. As a result, the mass displacement of people — thought to be a thing of the past — is starting up again, leaving ghost towns behind. Originally aired on the World Vision Report, February 2011.

Journalist takes on drug gangs in Colombia:  Leiderman Ortiz publishes a tabloid newspaper in the northern Colombian city of Caucasia. He specializes in exposing local corruption and the links between government officials and criminal gangs — and his courage in doing so comes at a price. Originally aired on World Vision Report, 2011.

Guerrilla: From the jungle to the city:  A guerrilla from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) escapes the rebel group only to find that life in the city has its challenges too. 

Gold Rush: The story of La Toma, an Afro-Colombian community fighting, amidst sky-rocketing gold prices and the pressures of a booming mining industry, to maintain ownership of their land and traditional  forms of mining. Aired on Latitudes, WAMU 88.5, Washington, DC, September 2011.

Blood Ties: From Iraq to Connecticut, the story of a U.S. Marine and his Iraqi translator. Uptown Radio, April 25, 2008.

Women’s role in Sierra Leone’s elections, Radio Netherlands Worldwide, July 2007.

Charles Taylor’s trial opens, Sierra Leone reacts. Radio Netherlands Worldwide, June 9, 2007.