Best of Colombia

In Colombia, people were very kind and willing to help, we found out they often talk about the risks we were exposed to and advised us on how to prevent robbery. After so many years of conflict and violence, fear seems to be internalized in all sectors of Colombian society. Another major consequence of all the decades of violence suffered in this country has been the high percentage of exile and migration. In 2003, it was estimated that between 4 and 5 million Colombians live outside their country, which is equivalent to 10% of the total population. We visited the Museo Casa de la Memoria (Museum House of Memory) in Medellin and understood the deep fear Colombians carry and project in their perception of the world surrounding them. The unequal distribution of the land has been and continues to be the main reason behind the army conflict in Colombia. This conflict has been negligently and intentionally unresolved by the upper class society in control of the government because they have historically benefited from maintaining conditions of economic and social inequality. Since the Spanish colonization, systematic violent events have stained the history of Colombia, in which several individuals and groups have played a decisive role. The extermination of progressive political groups and important liberal political leaders such as Jorge Eliecer Gaitan in 1948, Luis Carlos Galan in 1989, and Union Patriotica, impaired the plurality of ideas, intensifying the violence and the feelings of hopelessness amount the citizens. The foundation of the oldest guerrilla group, Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia – FARC, took place in 1964. Subsequently, the growing economic influence of the narcotic trafficking starting in 1974 promoted the expansion of the guerrillas and paramilitaries (illegal army groups fighting against the guerrillas). The number of assassinations, extortion, kidnappings, and massacres of journalist, politicians, and civilians all over Colombia escalated. There were previous failed attempts of peace between the Colombian government and FARC in 1998. Under a conservative government, a peace agreement between the government and paramilitaries was attained in 2002. These last years the government and FARC have been in peace talks in Cuba, which are closer to reaching an agreement that is set for March 2016. The future holds a mixture of hope and anxiety. Although the majority of citizens have expressed an endless desire for peace, a big sector of Colombians have been negative and apprehensive about the process. Let’s hope this new chapter of the country could close the gap of social inequality and redistribute land to the people that need it.