Jolie, Pitt spend Christmas with Colombia refugees

SAN JOSE, Costa Rica, Dec 27 (Reuters) Hollywood golden couple Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt handed out presents on Christmas Day to Colombian war refugees in Costa Rica, the United Nations refugee agency said.

Jolie, a goodwill ambassador for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, and Pitt -- one of Hollywood's most high-profile couples -- were without their three children as they visited refugees who fled armed conflict in Colombia.

The lightning visit was only revealed to the media yesterday to avoid paparazzi photographers.

Dressed in white and sporting a bright blue UNHCR baseball cap, Jolie called for more awareness of the plight of refugees around the world.

''It is especially shocking that such a tragedy can go on, year after year, with the rest of the world paying so little attention to it,'' she said in the Costa Rican capital San Jose, according to the UN agency.

The Central American country is home to an estimated 10,000 Colombian refugees.

''My Christmas message to Colombian refugees and to the millions of displaced people in Colombia is that the world has not totally forgotten them,'' Jolie said.

Up to 3 million people have been forced from their homes in Colombia by a four-decades-old guerrilla war, according to UNHCR estimates, and another half a million are believed to have fled abroad.

Jolie is famous for her humanitarian work and her head-turning looks as well as her acting, and Pitt, who split from former wife Jennifer Aniston in 2005, often accompanies her on trips around the world.

The pair, who say they have no plans to marry, have formed one of Hollywood's most glamorous families with baby daughter Shiloh, adopted Ethiopian daughter Zahara and adopted Cambodian son Maddox.

During their Costa Rican trip, the pair visited Colombian businesses funded by micro-credits, including a bakery where they were given a Christmas cake, gave presents to Colombian families and watched traditional Colombian dancing.

Reuters SBA VP0550