Ingrid Betancourt On Oprah

In support of her new book, Even Silence Has An End, rescued FARC captive Ingrid Betancourt was interviewed on Oprah yesterday along with her mother, Yolanda, and daughter, Melanie. (Sorry fans, but her incredibly hot son Lorenzo was back in France studying for exams.) Aside from recounting the terrifying capture and the gross amount of bugs and subhuman treatment in the jungle, (they lead her around on a leash), the newest piece of information was when Oprah asked Ingrid about the many harsh criticisms her fellow captives had for her after they were rescued. (They publicly called her everything from "the most disgusting human being I've ever encountered in my life", to "someone who represented death.") Ingrid, surprisingly, was not defensive, agreeing she turned into something of "an animal" in the jungle, taking more than her fair share of food, trying repeatedly to escape, and refusing to give up her radio –actions which put them all in grave danger.

Speaking of her radio, one of the most heart-wrenching parts of the interview was hearing Ingrid's mother, Yolanda, explain why she appeared on the radio almost every day that her daughter was in captivity, (six and a half years), not knowing if Ingrid even had a device with which to hear her.

Lastly, Ingrid revealed she had a "special" relationship with fellow captive American contractor Marc Gonsalves, admitting to Oprah, "I think it was love." Interestingly, Marc was one of the fellow captives who publicly criticized Ingrid in a memoir he co-wrote with two other rescued Americans. Ingrid told Oprah she maintains a close relationship with Marc today.

While her fellow captives may have resented Ingrid's sense of entitlement, it may have been that very thing that kept them all alive. Her refusal to be referred to as a number, her family's persistent lobbying for her rescue, even her high-profile status as a presidential candidate, kept the story in the news and their hopes for rescue alive.