In the heart of the Historic Center of Cartagena, the Colombian Navy commemorated a new anniversary of the heroic “Night of San Juan,” while kicking off the 2025 edition of the Sailing to the Heart of the Magdalena campaign, one of the most representative initiatives of the institutional commitment to the coastal communities of the Colombian Caribbean.
The act of commemoration recalled the early morning of June 24, 1821, when the troops commanded by Grand Admiral José Padilla López began the operation that would led the definitive liberation of Cartagena from royalist rule. With a solemn parade from the Larga Street in Getsemaní to the Bodeguita pier, the Sailors of Colombia paid tribute to those who starred in this independence feat. The activity, in the same way, included a wreath-laying ceremony in the Navy Park, in front of Padilla's monument, as a sign of respect and gratitude for his legacy as a naval hero of the homeland.
At the end of the military and protocol tour, the Amphibious Landing Ship ARC Golfo de Urabá sailed from the Bodeguita dock, marking the beginning of the tenth edition of the Sailing to the Heart of the Magdalena campaign. For 15 days, the ship will travel 716 nautical miles along the Magdalena River, in a journey that aims to bring well-being, health and hope to six villages in the department of Bolívar.
This year, the campaign will arrive in San Cristóbal on June 27, to the village of Robles on the 29th, to Zambrano on July 01st, to the village of Tacamocho on July 03rd, Taliagua Nuevo on the 05th and ending in Pinillos on July 07th. These activities are projected to directly impact more than 7,000 inhabitants and indirectly about 40,000 people. The inter-institutional teams accompanying this initiative will provide general and specialized medicine, nutrition, dentistry, optometry and vaccination services, as well as legal advice, social accompaniment, and humanitarian aid distribution.
Through this initiative, the Colombian Navy, through the Caribbean Naval Force, reaffirms its commitment to the national historical memory and to the consolidation of an effective State presence in the most remote territories. The campaign strengthens the coordination conducted by public and private institutions, generating opportunities for social development and improving the quality of life of the riverside communities of the great River of the homeland.
Source: Press – Navy of Colombia
