Soacha

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Soacha
Borough of Bogotá
Municipality of Colombia
Flag of Soacha
Flag
Coat of arms of Soacha
Coat of arms
Motto: Latin: Sol omnibus lucet
(The sun shines equally over everyone)
Location of Soacha in Cundinamarca Department.
Location of Soacha in Cundinamarca Department.
Soacha is located in Colombia
Soacha
Soacha
Location of Soacha in Cundinamarca Department.
Coordinates: 04°35′14″N 74°13′17″W / 4.58722°N 74.22139°W / 4.58722; -74.22139Coordinates: 04°35′14″N 74°13′17″W / 4.58722°N 74.22139°W / 4.58722; -74.22139
Country  Colombia
Region Andean Region
Department Cundinamarca
Province Soacha
Borough Bogotá
Established December 31, 1600
Government
 • Type Municipality, Borough
 • Mayor Juan Carlos Nemocón
Area
 • Borough of Bogotá
Municipality of Colombia
184 km2 (71 sq mi)
Elevation 2,565 m (8,415 ft)
Population (2005)
 • Borough of Bogotá
Municipality of Colombia
402,007
 • Density 2,200/km2 (5,700/sq mi)
 • Urban 393,006
Demonym(s) Suachuna
Area code(s) 57 + 1
Website Official website (Spanish)

Soacha is a borough of Bogotá, but considered for the Colombian Republic as a autonomous municipality. It has an important industrial zone and is home to mostly working-class families.

It's the only place of Colombia that is considerated as a Borough

Demographics[edit]

With a population of 402,007 inhabitants (2005 census), it is also Bogota's most populous suburb.

History[edit]

Soacha was founded on August 8 in 1600. It gained national notoriety after the presidential candidate Luis Carlos Galán was assassinated on August 18, 1989 while visiting the city during his presidential campaign.

In 2008, the 'false positives' scandal broke when 22 men from Soacha who had been recruited for work were found dead several hundreds of miles away. They had been killed by the military and presented to authorities as guerrilla fighters (insurgents) killed in battle, in order to increase action head counts. Similar cases have since appeared all over the country.[1]

References[edit]