Colombia Paper Final

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COLOMBIA

A Struggle to transcend a history of Violence

into a nation prosperity

By Senay Imre, Kristen Wolf, Thomas Johnson


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Introduction

With its diverse and complicated history, The Republic of Colombia is one of the nations

that come a long way and shown a decent growth in the name of development. After inhabited by

indigenous people and colonized by Spain, Colombia gained its independence in 1819. As a

unitary constitutional republic that is composed of 32 departments, Colombia had the first

constitutional government in South America. Its political parties; the Liberals and Conservatives

are among the oldest political parties in the Americas.

Colombia is extremely diverse in terms of population and environment. The country is

located in the northwest part of South America. It is bordered by Venezuela, Panama, Brazil,

Ecuador, Peru, the Caribbean Sea, and the Pacific Ocean. Colombia is the 26th largest country

by area and 27th in terms of population. It is the second largest country in terms of speaking

Spanish, behind Mexico. It is considered a middle power, with the 4th largest economy in Latin

America, and the 3rd largest in South America.

Colombia, as one of the most violent countries on the planet, has a striking historical

political background. This paper will lay out Colombias violent history due to an insecure,

unbalanced, rivalry political system with a focus on overall view of the economy and the major

social issues the country is having as a result of the existence of armed conflict; the countrys

biggest trouble.

COLOMBIAS POLITICAL HISTORY

Liberals vs. Conservatives from 1860-1905 Kristen Wolf


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The violence in Colombia can be traced back to the issues between the liberals and

conservatives in Colombia that have been pervasive in Colombian politics since independence.

Liberals in Colombia wanted a more federalist system where there was more power to the states

and less power to the central governments. This would have been a predominantly agrarian based

system that focused on free trade and equality in the countryside among land owners. The

Conservatives wanted a more centralize government with control over the economy. The

Conservatives were situated in the cities while the liberals were more in the country side. The

violence in Colombia since liberation can be traced back to the disruptions and arguments

between the liberals and conservatives.

1

The Liberals took control in 1860 with a period called Olimpo Radical. This period saw a

rise in rural accountability and agency. More power was sent to the municipalities than the

central government. The liberals focused on federalism and were interested in promoting a free

economy. They also wanted the Catholic Church to be removed completely from state politics

and economics.2

In response to the liberals pushing all power to the countryside and removing power from

the centralized government, the Conservatives started the revolt of 1877. The revolt failed in

1877, but created a chain of political events that led to the Conservatives taking power in 1885.

From 1885-1930 the Conservatives maintained power in a period called the Hegemonia

Conservadora. From 1885 to 1900 the conservatives started a time called la Regeneracion which

effectively returned Colombia to a state it was at before the liberals came to power. La

Regeneracion gave the power back to the Catholic Church as well as the centralized

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government.3

The conservatives did this by enacting the law of 61 and effectively eliminating the

Liberals from almost all positions of power within the central government and within the

municipalities as well.4

By eliminating the Liberals and effectively reversing all reforms they made during the

time of Olimpo Radical, the conservatives gave the liberals no choice but to use violence to

regain power. The violence came after first attempting to join the peaceful discussion with the

conservatives. When the conservatives refused to make political reform and allow the liberals to

have a voice they started the Thousand Days War.5

The war ended with the promise of political

reform. This reform came in the form of the 1905 political reforms.

6

Before 1905, the ruling power was able to hold the majority within the congress. At

times, they could rule the congress completely and not have even one member of an opposing

party present. The 1905 reforms sought to change this in the form of the incomplete vote. The

incomplete vote ensured that there was more equal representation in the congress. The winning

part got 1/3 of the votes, the runner up got the second 1/3 of the votes and the rest of the parties

got the remainder of the seats.7 This allowed for a more equal congress and a forum for all voices

to be heard better than they were being heard before.

The incomplete vote came at a pivotal time in the history of Colombia. The liberals had

now power but military power which wasnt even strong enough to overthrow the Conservatives.

The Conservatives knew that they would effectively be able to maintain power for the long term,

but wanted to prevent violence from erupting. Both parties knew that if the Liberals did not have

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any voice at all they would use all means possible to gain their voice. In order to maintain peace,

the Conservatives relinquished some of their power to the Liberals.8

History from 1903 1930 Kyle Johnson

Reyes Presidency

The following is a summary of the history and some of the economy of Colombia from

1903 to 1930. In the aftermath of the War of a Thousand Days, the motives and legitimacy of

the different groups of each political party were called into question. Therefore, the moderates

of each party realized that they needed to work together in order to maintain the country and

economy, so for the first time in Colombian history the conservatives and liberals decided that it

was crucial to work together. Before this, it was common practice for each ruling party to

completely exclude the opposition. Now, even though the conservatives were still technically in

power, the conservatives had a coalition government that brought in liberals into the cabinet

other governing bodies. By doing this, they removed the impetus that had caused so much

political violence and strife in the past.

When the civil war was over, the country needed a new leader. General Rafael Reyes

was the answer. The moderate conservatives supported Reyes. He wanted to unify the country,

renew the economy, and not let anything stand in his way in doing so. His policies were

contradictory. They were a mix of political reconciliation and authoritarianism, which led to a

forced liberal representation in government, which was still controlled technically by

conservatives. His trade policies brought on domestic growth of industries, which led to the

growth of cities and it became necessary to develop urban infrastructure.

To make certain of his reforms, Reyes centralized the power of the government. He

disbanded the Congress and set up a National Assembly that had direct representation from

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members of the various Colombian departments. Reyes controlled all of this. This ensured that

the Liberals were adequately represented. The National Assembly was designed to allow Reyes

to implement his policies that went against leading economic theory that would not have been

approved by the former congress. Through all of this, Reyes was able to created a fiscally

responsible administration, gain stability in the currency, return the government to the gold

standard, restore credit abroad, attract foreign capital, improve transportation, encourage export

agriculture, and aid industry domestically. Unfortunately, he also garnered a great deal of

opposition.

Reyes wanted to normalize trade with the United States, but this idea was unpopular. In

1909, he unsuccessfully tried to force, via the legislature, the approval of the Thompson-Urrutia

Treaty with the United States. This treaty, which would have established relations with the

United States and recognize Panamas independence, gave the opposition a reason to oppose

Reyes. In June 1909, the Republican Union, conservatives who opposed Reyes, won a majority

in elections held to reestablish the Congress. Reyes resigned later that month and left Colombia.

Carlos Restrepo, a founder of the Republican Union, became the president after Reyes.

Liberal merchants and conservative agriculturists became interested in exporting coffee, a

commodity that was quickly becoming a leader in the Colombian economy. This mutual interest

allowed for a coalition in the government again. Even though the conservatives had control of

political institutions until 1930, they allowed for the use of Liberal representation in the

government. This made political stability possible.9

Economic and Social Change Kyle Johnson

9 (http://wp.me/p1Qq3f-47) History of Colombia 1903-1930


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At the beginning of the 20th century, the Colombian economy diversified and

industrialized. Industries began to boom in several important towns including Medellin, and

Bogota, and new groups formed because of import substitution and a larger financial sector.

In the beginning of the century, Colombia was more integrated in global markets.

President Suarez renewed relations with the United States opening the door for exchange and

investment. The United States became Colombias key trading partner, replacing Britain. Most

exchange came from coffee trade. Also, some loans were given to Colombia by the United States

as a result of Colombia losing Panama. Under the Ospina administration, public works

accelerated. Industrial investment mostly came from private and foreign interests. Also during

the Opsina administration, the banking and financial sectors were reorganized, which led to the

creation of the Bank of the Republic.

A working class that learned to unionize soon formed due to the growth of industry and

construction. 1918 saw Colombias first major strikes. This union movement was influenced by

European socialist ideas. The movement and strikes were a precursor to the Colombian Socialist

Party. In a terrible instance, a strike against United Fruit Company ended violently by armed

forces. Jorge Gaitan was critical of the violence in the strike and became a speaker for the

working class.

The liberals eventually rose to power after people became increasingly unhappy with the

conservative governments. Because of the growth in the industry and construction that led to the

union movement, many workers were taken out of the primary agricultural sector, which made

rural workers ask for higher wages. In 1928 the government began importing food, which

caused protests from agriculturists. Workers and artisans also protested the rise of inflation. The

tension increased in Colombia during the Mendez administration, and eventually the people had


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had enough and the conservative party lost power after a 45-year reign. The liberals gained

power and held it for the next 15 years, during World War II.10

The Era of Violence 1930-1974 by Senay Imre

Colombia 1930-45

The disparity among Conservatives over proposed candidates favored the outcome in

Liberals side. Liberals took office after 45 years of Conservatives rule. This transition created

clashes among the lower classes of partisan groups who wanted to maintain their privileges such

as controlling the small plots of land, offered by the previous Conservative government.

Colombia was facing difficult times as the world was experiencing WWII and economic crisis.

Followed by the decline in the price of coffee and the block on the loans from the US banks,

President Enrique Olaya Herrera Olaya was challenged in his first year of presidency. Despite

these disadvantages, Olaya managed to implement some significant reforms. However, these

reforms werent satisfying enough as Liberals were demading for more than reforms;

Revolution. As a result, formation of Revolutionary Leftist National Union was unavoidable.

Gaitan, as the leader of the union succeed to compromise with the government in exchange for a

seat in congress as well as recognition of his reforms. 11

When Olayas successor Lopez Pumarejo took office, Colombias economic outlook was

not that promising. However he was enthusiastic about reviving Colombias economy and he

took instant actions by implementing extensive reforms in agriculture, education and tax system.

He diversified countrys exports and applied import substitution policy. The price of coffee and

volume of exports increased in his term. Eduardo Santos followed the footsteps of Pumarejo and

focused on Colombias economy, mainly focusing on capitalist and agricultural development.

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Important amount of industrial expansion took place during his term. By replacing the cheap

labor in traditional latifundios with the capitalist haciendas, he changed the distribution of

population from rural to urban areas. This transition increased the supply of labor and the

demand for consumer goods. Santos also took an important step towards creating a more

democratic and liberal Colombia. He separated education from the church. His successor, second

term winner Pumarejo, wanted to extend Santoss step by separating the church from the state.

However this was a giant step and Colombia was not ready for it. Fanatical Colombian Catholic

Church reacted with enormous animosity therefore expected Pumeraj to resign. As a result,

Alberto Lleras Camargo took office in 1945 but he was unsuccessful in building the unity needed

in Colombia. A split among the Liberal partys nomination resulted with the election of the

Conservative Mariano Ospina Perez.12

Colombia 1948-58 Senay Imre

The mid-twentieth century plays a crucial role in shaping Colombias political system.

Years between 1948 and 1963 is referred as la violencia in Colombias history. Due to severe

violence, assassination, extortion, torture and mass murder, the country shed a lot of blood. The

origin and nature of the conflict and its continuation is significant in order to understand the

social, political and economic state of todays Colombia.13

The Beginning: -Senay Imre

After the war of thousand days ended with the victory of Conservatives, the relationship

between conservatives and liberals deteriorated fast as the hostility and opposition accelerated.

Conservatives started to use their power to suppress and control Liberals and their struggle in

restoring the political system. 1940s presidential candidate Jorge Eliecer Gaitans distinguished

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himself from the others by mobilizing urban laborers and Liberal peasants. Conservatives

terrified to lose power to Liberals again, the tension and hostility reached its peak.14

April 9,1948 Bogotazo Senay Imre

Gaitan was assassinated in front of his office in Bogota on April 9, 1948.The

assassination of a very powerful candidate was the start of the period called La Violencia..

Gaitan was a great orator and his populist speeches were very effective on poor communities. He

was the representative of hope and change for the poor and they were disappointed as they lost

the hope and change promised by Gaitan. They were out of control and armed with guns,

machetes, knives, and attacked government buildings, policemen, burnt and vandalized stores,

broke into police headquarters. When the rage was over, 3000 were dead and Bogota was

destroyed. The blood shed from Gaitan led to the blood shed of many Colombians. An expected

unity did not arrive and the conservatives used it as an excuse to crack down on the working

class and the liberals saw it as a possible stepping stone to revolution. 15

La Violencia 1948-58 Senay Imre

La violence was all about fanaticism in political rivalry and rural banditry. 200,000

people lost their lives and more than billions of dollars of damage was estimated in the country.

The result of this period was devastating. As successive governments failed to address the

demand of people for socioeconomic changes, this period lasted longer than it was expected.

The start of violence with the assassination of Gaitan spread throughout the country,

especially in regions Andes and llanos. The Ospina government found consolation in being more

repressive and controlling towards Liberals. He banned all public meetings in March 1949, fired

all Liberal governors, ordered the army to close Congress, and rural police forces to be stricter

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against belligerents and Liberals. These actions resulted in resignation of all Liberals in charge.

Liberals didnt present a candidate for 1950s election, thus Gomez as the only Conservative

candidate took office. However, the question that stayed in the minds of many would have the

outcome presented below been different if Liberals took power in 1950? 16

This was probably the worst decision Colombians had made. The arrival of Gomez to

power deteriorated the current stage instead of uplifting the public. His politics were all about

authority, hierarchy, and order. His actions agitated the public who was already filled with

extreme hostility towards the people in charge. He played his cards against Liberals and put as

many restrictions as he could to block them. He wanted to combine traditional Conservative

republicanism with the European corporatism. He expanded the authority of his presidency under

the new neofasict constitution he prepared and increased the role of the church, reduced civil

liberties, cancelled pro-labor laws from 1930s, shut down independent labor unions, censored the

press, let the executive control the courts and challenged the freedom of worship as masses

attached Protestant chapels. His term was a step back from liberty and democracy. All the effort

and time Liberals spent to improve the country was destroyed by Gomez. His acts, without

surprise, accelerated the violence and his government failed to cope with increasing violence.

Thousands of people were murdered and his government was overthrown by military figure

General Rojas Pinilla. 17

At first, Pinilla was effective in putting an end to the violence in the streets. By proposing

an amnesty and a government aid to people in revolt, he convinced thousands to put their arms

down. He took instant actions and released political prisoners, stopped press censorship and

depoliticized the police by moving National Police to the armed forces. He worked towards the

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demand of the poor for socioeconomic changes, majorly invested his time on public works to

create jobs for the unemployed. He constructed transportation networks and hospitals and

improved the system of credit for small farmers. He founded the National Social Welfare Service

with his daughter to provide the needs of the poor. He rearranged the tax system and charged

more taxes to the elite. However, these reforms failed to alter the unbalanced and delicate

structure of the society.18

He wanted to create a populist political base by attacking the elite and favoring military

and the church. However he wasnt very successful in his political strategy and he lost support

after his first year of presidency. The shape of his regime shifted as the violence hit the streets

again. He stopped the social reforms, increased the military expanses, censored major presses,

and even closed some. He prisoned those who spoke ill of him and in February of 1956, he killed

thousands of people who didnt support him in the so called Bull Ring Massacre. As tension and

violence accelerated in the streets, the troops were becoming more brutal. At this time, complete

corrupt dictatorship was in rule. Pinalli became one of the biggest threats of the country.

Conservatives and Liberals, who failed to unite during the time of la violence, decided to unite in

order to overthrow Colombias Hitler, Rojas Pinalli. 19

The National Front (1958-74) Senay Imre

The combination of deteriorating socioeconomic status quo with the power struggle

among the two opposing parties resulted with a period like La Violencia. The formation of

National Front was an important step and a chance for the opposing parties to cool off the

political competition and tensions in the streets

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A final agreement called Sitges Agreement was signed between the parties in 1957 in

Sitges, Spain and San Carlos Agreement conditioned that a Conservative would be the first

president under a National Front elected by a National Congress. These agreements were vital in

restoring the peace in the country as they laid out solutions for major problems. Decreasing

tension between parties, providing an environment for collaborative work and restoring of the

Constitution of 1886 that was nullified by Rojas Pinilla were among the major conditions in the

agreements. The two parties agreed to share power every four years from twelve to sixteen years

and the agreements ensured sharing legislative bodies equally. Decisions such as saving at least

10% of the national budget to education and providing equal political rights for women were

essential steps to heal the wounded social platform. 20

Majority of Colombians participated in the foreseeable national plebiscite to approve the

Sitges and San Carlos agreements in December 1957. Conservatives took the majority of the

seats in Congress in the congressional election. However, the disagreement between the party on

the proposed presidential candidates (Gmez vetoed the proposed presidential candidacy of

Valencia) give the priority to the Liberals to be the first president under the National Front.

Liberal Lleras Camargo became the first president under the National Front in August 1958. 21

Camargo spent four productive years in power. He wanted to improve and stabilize the

countrys economy with the proposed austerity program. He searched for ways to increase the

output of industrial and agricultural products. It was in his term that the country experienced its

most balanced trade in 20 years. He decreased import transactions and increased exports,

stabilized the currency and founded the National Planning Department. He passed an agrarian

reform law in 1961 and formed the Colombian Institute of Agrarian Reform agency. In terms of

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social problems, he worked towards to better the life styles of poor by providing better access to

water supply, better housing, sewers and education. 22

His successor Conservative Valencia however had to deal with the declining economy

and the reactionary public. High prices, decrease in coffee prices, great amount of printing

money, high inflation and USs block on the loans promised, worsened the economic situation

and put the country in deficit. People were in the streets protesting for a better life. Valencia

determined to take precautions and austerity measures to settle the inflation and implemented

credible reforms under decree. This convinced foreign aids to invest in Colombia again.23

With ups and downs, the National Front government taught Liberals and Conservative to

agree to disagree. Even though, there were several movements formed as an opposition to the

National Front such as; National Popular Alliance, Liberal Revolutionary Movement however

National Front succeed to erase the traces of La Violence until the formation of a terrorist

guerilla movement. In 1964 the National Liberation Army (ELN) was formed by students and

reached its popularity when a Roman Catholic priest, joined the guerrilla group in 1966 and died

in an armed conflict with government forces. In 1966 the Revolutionary Armed Forces of

Colombia (FARC) -- started to function as a branch of the PCC and from then on, armed conflict

emerged as the countrys number one problem.24

After the National Front Kristen Wolf

After the national front Colombia saw a time of low competition between political parties

because there was no reason to fight for elections. Parties were forced to work with each other

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and no one could have any say in whether or not a party got elected next term. This saw a

relaxation of party lines that also came with issues of nonparticipation amongst the groups.25

This also served as a problem because during this time the masses were migrating to the

cities. This meant that the traditional liberal base moved into conservative territory. This made

the parties weak and disjointed from the populace. The issue became that the parties no longer

served the population they once did. This was because they lost strength, traditional lines were

crossed in terms of liberals working in urban areas.26

This disjunction between the party and the people meant that people had a growing

distrust for politics. They were worried because many in politics were also involved in the drug

trade. They didnt know who to trust so they created divisions within the parties. This caused the

political parties and ultimately the government to lose power.27

Drugs had control over almost

every aspect of politics and the economy. This caused all politicians to be forced to get involved

in the violence for fear of their lives.28 This made some people turn towards the military and

become radical. Guerilla movements were created at this time in an effort to support the

population who had been neglected by the other political movements.29

After the National Front was also a time for economic growth. There were many export

revenues being brought in during the 1970s, but there was still a high unemployment rate. This

made people very nervous and caused social unrest. The government tried to raise employment

by spending on infrastructure projects, but at the same time they had to worry about inflation and

implemented anti inflationary measures and implement austerity, which hindered economic

development. At the same time the coffee industry was hurting due to international prices and

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weather issues. The nation turned towards drugs to find a profit. This lead to another financial

market, the underground market coming in to play and messing everything up that the

government was trying to do.30

When Lopez Michelsen came to power from 1974-1978 he had to deal with the extreme

amount of money coming into the country from the drug trade. This was only benefiting a few

people and not all, it was affecting everyone because of the strong economic influence drugs had

and still has in Colombia. There was so much foreign money coming into the country that the

government had no choice except to react with traditional economic measures, which in turn hurt

the formal economy even more, turning more people to the drug trade. This meant that the

people who needed jobs werent able to get them because they couldnt be created.31 This vicious

cycle promoted violence and effectively made any political or social measures difficult to enact.

Michelsen also had the close the gap program32, which was an attempt to close the

inequality gap . He also worked towards the Integrated Rural Development program. Through

these programs he was required to promote even more austerity measures, which created many

more strikes and protests. The student strike in October 1976 was one of the largest of this time.

People began to strike and so the government reacted with force, causing much violence and a

few people killed in 1976 and 1977.33

Due to the political issues which rendered the government ineffective at this time, many

people turned to the guerillas under Michelsen. FARC, M 19, and ELN were very popular

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movements that saw their numbers grow during this time. The EPL was prominent before this

time, but lost effectiveness because their leader died in 1975.34

While the economy was in shambles, more and more people turned to drugs to make a

living. The government attempted to get jobs back to the people in order to regain control of the

economy, but the austerity measures and economic precautions of the previous decade prevented

the government form being effective. The money coming into the country though was not going

towards investing in the country but individual consumption. This undermined any government

economic programs. It also took away fertile lands from the people who used to grow food

because it was more profitable to grow drugs.

35

Turbay was elected president next from 1978-1982. When he came to office he had a

better financial situation because inflation was down. This was due to the coffee bust before his

presidency. He wanted to stave off a recession and try to give power back to regions rather than

have centralized power. He also wanted to invest in infrastructure and promoted the National

Integration Plan. (1979-1982). To finance these projects he turned to foreign loans. This meant a

rise in inflation and also in foreign debt.36

In order to interact with the guerrillas the state started the National Security Statue of

1978. This resulted in repression of the majority of the population through the violence created

through the military, paramilitary, guerrillas, and the drug traders. Many activists were called

subversives and tortured under the state and military. This caused an increase in the strength of

the guerrilla movements under Turbay. The M19 became the most active movement in the cities

while the FARC and ELN were most prominent in the countryside. 37

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Turbay also sent the military out to the countryside to stop drug trafficking. He involved

the United States by sending out members of the national police and the United States for

training. Operation Tiburon began in Dec 1980, which was an initiative to crack down on the

violence. Drug trafficking was usually connected to the paramilitaries and the drug traders, but in

1981 the M19, a city based guerrilla movement was also linked to drug trafficking. 1981 also

saw an increase in paramilitary activity with the creation of MAS or death to kidnappers that was

started by the drug traffickers against the FARC in an effort to gain more control over the

countryside and make the drug trading easier. The MAS ultimately turned into a right wing

killing machine.

38

During the mid 1980s and 1990s the guerillas and government attempted peace on

multiple occasions. The guerillas stopped fighting and laid down arms at one point, but the

continued their repression and murdered many of their members after the cease fire. The

paramilitaries, who were supported by the government and also the most violent of the groups

murdered many peaceful political party members of the FARC known as the UP during the

1980s. The paramilitaries killed more people than any other violent group in Colombia.39 The

FARC differs from other violent groups in Colombia because of the political goals. They want to

see a Marxist government that focus on the people.40

Through the 1990s the government along

with the US took a hard line against the drug cartels in Colombia. This had an intense effect on

the country by displacing thousands of people. The violence has made Colombia one of the

countries with the largest displaced population in the world. During the mid 1980s the FARC

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began to promote their own party, the UP. This was supposed to keep them from fighting and

allow them to sign a cease fire with most people.41

Before the early push in the 1990s to dismantle the Medellin drug cartel, the FARC had

limited power and received most of their funding from kidnappings. They were mostly located in

the southern region and received their money from kidnappings. The drug cartels and the

paramilitaries mostly kept the FARC at bay because the FARC wanted to tax the wealthy drug

dealers, who were the land elite in many areas. The drug cartels worked with the paramilitaries to

keep the FARC at bay. At this time the government was using mostly a containment policy on

the FARC and used the paramilitaries as well to prevent them from spreading. The government

worked with the FARC for a slow removal of power. The balance, although violent, remained in

the late 1980s and 1990s. This meant political and economic balance.42

In the early 1990s the United States began their war against drugs. They started looking

to Colombia to get rid of their drugs because they were the largest trafficker of drugs in the

region. Peru and Bolivia were the best growers and they would send their drugs to Colombia to

have them processed and then shipped to the United States. In all of this, the Colombians were

the ones who had the most money in the deal.43

The US government during the early 1990s focused on aerial fumigation in Peru. This

meant that the cocoa that used to be flown in from Peru had to be grown in Colombia. The US

also started to push on the Colombian government to dismantle the major drug cartels, which

were the Medellin and Cali drug cartels. This was supposed to prevent drugs from flying into

Colombia to get processed because the drug cartels in Medellin were the ones who were paying

41http://wp.me/p1Qq3f-6fColombia on the brink notes (look to 15 about the UP)42http://wp.me/p1Qq3f-6fColombia on the brink notes 14 (about the balance of power between paramilitaries andFARC)43http://wp.me/p1Qq3f-4J The FARCs best friend


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for the drugs in the first place. The Medellin drug cartel flew in the drugs because they had all

the capital to pay for the plains to fly the drugs from Peru into Colombia. The US decided to go

after the Medellin Cartel and effectively took out Pablo Escobar and the other head of the drug

cartel.44

With the aerial fumigation in Colombia, the poor farmers needed someone to turn to for

help. They looked to the FARC to help them save their crops. Not only did the US fumigate coca

crops, but legal ones as well that the farmers relied on. The US also pushed the drug cartels into

the FARCs territory. Once the drug cartels were there, mostly the Cali cartel after the Medellin

one was gone the FARC started taxing the drugs. They could do this because they had low

military opposition and did not have anyone against them. This caused the FARC to gain power

and from that they could do more. They started making more money off the drug trade than off

the kidnappings like they once had. As the government was focusing on Peru the drugs shifted to

Colombia.45

Once the Medellin drug cartel was dismantled, the Cali cartel and other cartels began to

look to Colombians to grow more coca. This was because the smaller cartels were not organized

and could not import the drugs from Peru and other countries. This all caused the FARC to begin

to tax the drug traders in the region. Ti helped the small farmers and the FARC only taxed large

farmers and allowed smaller ones to keep their land and their produce. This kept the balance of

power.46

Sampier Kristen Wolf

During the 1994 election Ernesto Samper ran and won against his opponent on a platform

of a hard-line approach to drugs. After he was elected, the US released narcocassettes that

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showed that he had been working with the Cali drug cartel to ensure their protected trafficking of

drugs in Colombia. This caused the FARC to gain strength because the Cali drug traders didnt

have as much support from the government. This also caused Samper to crack down on the Cali

ring because the United States cut the budget for Colombia from 100 million to 30 million. This

is when the farc started taxing more because the Cali ring was really not working. Peru, realizing

that the Sampier administration was not taking the hard line they promised before, began to shoot

down planes carrying drugs.47 Due to the allegations of business deals with the drug cartels,

Sampier lost his visa to the United States. This made him the first Colombian president ever to

lose his visa to the United States.

48

Because Sampier could no longer be relied on for a source of security for the people, the

FARC gained more power. They were supported by the local farmers who didnt like their crops

being fumigated. Samper was a huge supporter of allowing the US to do this. The US wanted to

do it more in Colombian because the drug growing was becoming more and more prevalent.49

The government wouldnt stop the fumigation so they ultimately lost the support of their base.

This meant that the farc had more support because they were for the people. All of this made the

government less trusted.50

All the while the FARC got even stronger because without the money from the US

government the Colombian government couldnt pay their military. This caused the FARC to

have freer reign over the region. Before the United States intervened, the government kept the

farc at bay. Now they had no money to fight the farc.51

Pastrana Kristen Wolf

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Pastrana was elected in 1998 under the assumption that he would try to end the violence

while increasing the social welfare of the people, much like every other president before him. He

started the peace talks with the FARC in 1998, but was unable to have them lay down their

weapons because there was so much distrust of the government.52

Pastrana had difficulty as well with the US and their willingness to give Colombia funds.

The United States had recently entered the War on Terror and had effectively stepped back from

working with Colombia. Colombia used to be one of the most important countries in terms of US

aid, but after the war on terror began, Colombia took a back burner. It was not until the drug

smugglers were looked at as narcoterrorists that the US began to fund the Colombians again.

53

In 2000, under the Pastrana administration the United States gave $1 billion to Colombia

and allowed the Colombians to call the FARC terrorists and call a war on terror. This meant that

there were more fumigations and more military attacks. This upset farmers, but didnt affect the

FARC as much as intended. The ACU was also increasing in power during this time. The AUC

was started by Carlos Castano who received money to promote his paramilitary through the drug

trade. The AUC was funded by the United States to defeat the FARC. Ultimately it is hard to tell

what the USs goal was in the drug trade. They funded programs that ended up promoting the

drug trade and hurting the Colombian population.54

In 1999, drugs were between 25%-35% of the national exports of Colombia. This had

increased from years previous and was difficult to measure due to the illicit nature of the trade. 55

The trade was affecting relations with not only the United States who were funding the war

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against the drug trade, but Peru, Venezuela, Panama and Ecuador as well.56

In terms of the US

in 1999 Colombia was the third largest receiver of military aid from the United States. This

military aid was going towards the Colombian military as well as the paramilitaries who were

fighting against the FARC. In terms of relations with Peru, Fujimori was opposed to Pastrana

because Pastrana was trying to promote peace between the insurgents by talking to them.

Fujimori had taken a much more hard line approach to the drug trade and was actually promoting

actions such as shooting down planes to show the drug traders what he was capable of.57

At the time Pastrana left the administration, he had very low popularity. He was unable to

find an agreement with the FARC and the situation as bad or worse as when he started office.

The FARC had gained ground and were creating new political and social means to promote their

revolution. Cano in the FARC had created the Bolivarian movement. This movement was

socialist in nature and sought to unite all people of Northern South America against imperialism

and capitalism. This made the Bush administration nervous against terrorist attacks towards the

United States. They were worried about an axis forming between Havana, Caracas, and

Bogota.58

Uribe Administration Kristen Wolf

Uribe is from the district of Antioquia, which is one of the Wealthiest districts in

Colombia. It is a home to Medellin, which is one of the largest cities for drug smuggling, as well

as a strong district for coffee growers, commerce and manufacturing. Before he was president,

Uribe was a senator and a governor. He worked on social issues for the poor and was seen as a

hardliner against violence but still a politician who was within the law.59

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He ran on the platform of increasing military spending to ensure that the guerrillas and

the paramilitaries were no longer a threat to the Colombian people. He wanted to increase

military spending so that the people of Colombia could enjoy social prosperity. He thought that

by increasing military spending and reducing the violence, the social peace and prosperity would

come. Uribe promised that he would stay away from neoliberal economic policies for his

country, but that the economic situation would be such that investors from foreign countries

would want to invest in Colombia.60

One of the most important things he did was to return land to victims of violence. Under

the Uribe administration there were huge issues with political violence. The guerrillas and the

gangs were going strong. The paramilitaries were also very strong. There were also a lot of legal

problems. The courts didnt run well because there was no clearly defined role as a judge. Uribe

started the Democratic Security Policy that helped improve the rural military forces. This helped

make sure that the guerrillas had less to worry about. He also started the new accusatory system

which made the Colombian courts more effective. This gave the judge less to do and made the

system work faster. He also encouraged foreign investment by allowing investors to have

Colombia be a tax haven. He also helped start the Colombia free trade agreement.61

While Uribe was one of the most popular presidents of his time, he soon became

unpopular after he left office because of the accusations against him concerning corruption while

he as in office. Before he was president, he attempted to make the government less corrupt. After

he got in office, things changed. Current accusations have come out against him that he was

caught with the US spying on other groups. This also means that the probably had other people

that were supporting him. He was able to eliminate the threat of the paramilitaries and had them

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lay down their arms. He was also able to move the FARC to the farthest most corners of the

country in order to keep them out of the city. When Santos came to office in 2010 he had a

country that was ready for him to begin creating a better place.

Uribe put measures in place where peasants would be compensated for the land they lost

due to the violence. This has caused problems for the Santos administration, but will hopefully

turn out to be something good for all. Currently the situation has made the local elections more

violent than ever because the elections were meant to show who got to take control of the money

going out to the municipalities. Uribe wanted to decentralize power to ensure that there was more

power to the municipalities. This means the potential for more corruption and for more violence

as the BACRAS and the FARC want to take more power from the local municipalities in order to

further their agendas and businesses. Uribe also helped push forward the Colombia Free Trade

Agreement with the United States. Santos has just passed this late this year. The US was afraid

of human rights violations.

Latest Election Kristen Wolf

Local elections have been a point of tension in Colombia this year because of the upswing in

political violence. Before the elections there were 159 counts of political violence in rural areas

that were voting for the elections. The elections consisted of elections for governors, mayors and

legislative members in local municipalities. The voting has been important because of the new

$16 billion that goes out to the localities now to help with development. The gangs,

paramilitaries, and guerrillas want control over the government because they not only want some

of the money, but they want to have free reign to do what they need to do in the areas.

The violence has been difficult for people. Many of the people running for election drop out

quickly after they are threatened. This means that the paramilitaries, guerrillas, and gangs can


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determine who gets to be in office. There is also been an upswing in fear of the people. The

people are in a difficult position because they fear for their lives because of the gangs and

whatnot, but they also fear the government and do not trust the government because of the shady

sides they take in all issues. For example, kidnappings that are reported are up 35% this year.

The others ones arent reported because the people do not trust the government.

Santos has tried to prevent the violence by sending body guards to the people running for

office. This hasnt worked because there arent enough people. He has sent 300,000 police and

military personnel out to the villages before the elections. This still has not helped. Santos was in

the Uribe government as a security director.

62

Gustavo Petro won the election for mayor in Bogota this last fall. He defeated his running

mate, Penalosa, who is a member of the green party and backed by Uribe. Uribe backed many

candidates in these local elections, but many of them did not win. This is because of the

corruption charges placed on Uribe after he left office. Petro was actually pretty influential after

2006 in coming up with the charges against Uribe.

In Bogota, there is a problem with corruption and murder as with the rest of the country.

The current economic stats say that 26% of the economy of Colombia comes from illegal trade.

Petro has promised to get rid of the corruption and try to promote projects that will help the poor.

He was a former M-19 member and can relate to the poor because he comes from a poorer

background than many of the other candidates. He also helped the M-19 discuss peace with the

government in 1990 and then helped write the constitution in 1992. This has led to his success in

Bogota.

He has promised to increase healthcare, schools, and remove corruption from the local

government. This is important because corruption has infiltrated every aspect of government.

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Since Uribe passed the bills to try to get more money back into the local government, there has

been a lot of talk about trying to promote the removal of corruption.63

Security Kristen Wolf

Housing sales in Colombia are on the rise because of the recent commodities bubble that

Latin American is currently experiencing. After the crash of the housing market in 2008, the

market turned toward commodities in order to find a more stable place for their money. The

commodities boom has helped the rising middle class in Colombia feel comfortable enough with

their economic situation to start buying houses. The middle class in Colombia is now at 30%.

Housing sales are also up 30% from 2009.

Housing sales have been able to increase because of the increase in demand. The lenders

are careful not to create bad mortgages by making sure that people put down 30% on their

houses. This makes sure that people are serious. Housing prices are expected to increase as the

bubble for commodities stays strong. Demand for houses is expected to double. The

commodities boom is with iron ore, copper, coffee, oil and soybeans.

The housing increase means that people in Colombia are feeling more secure. This is

mostly financial security, but is also from the decrease in violence in the cities as well. People

will start buying houses and then will be able to take care of their neighborhoods again. Drug

traders used to be the only ones who could afford houses. Now it is everyone. Because of this,

everyone will want their neighborhoods to be safer and will not need to live in fear of violence

anymore.64

While housing sales have made Colombia feel more secure, the gangs paramilitaries and

leftist rebels in Colombia have caused more tension recently by increasing violence. The rebels

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are still attacking land holders, trafficking drugs, and energy infrastructure. The most common

commodities to take taxes from are the ones that are raw materials. Oil, energy, and drugs are all

easy for gangs to take a cut before the products are shipped out

The gangs are looking for land and the money that is given out to local municipalities to

help people who have been displaced by the violence. Uribe has promised many people in

Colombia money for being displaced. He has sent the money out, but the military cannot keep

control of the people or protect the money, so therefore the money is just being given to the

gangs. Local union leaders have had problems too. 52 deaths have come from the unions this

year. CUT is the largest trade union in Colombia.

65

Security has also affected Colombias oil production. Colombia, the 4th largest oil

producer in Latin American struggles with the human rights abuses and the violence against

businesses and workers consistently. Members of oil companies have been striking for better

working conditions and this has coincided with violence against the company. While the

company understands that violence is not coming from the striking workers, they still need to

protect their company and are threatening to leave if the violence doesnt get any better. This

puts pressure on Santos to make sure that the violence does not get in the way of international

business.66

Because of the violence in recent years, Colombia is the 5th most dangerous country in

the world. This is due to violent crime. The report came out from the Geneva declaration.

Violent crime is more dangerous than wars. Violent deaths also happen more often in

underdeveloped countries than in developed countries.67

Current FARC Situation Kristen Wolf

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Santos has taken a hard line against the FARC since he has taken office. He told the FARC

before the murder of Alfonso Cano that if the FARC didnt demobilize they would be put in jail

or killed. This statement came after the death of 4 of the top ranking FARC leaders over the last

3 years. Manuel Marulanda, Mono Jojoy, Cano as well as another leader have died over the last 3

years. This has lead to the decentralization of the FARC and the prospect of a more violent group

in the years to come.

The FARC are currently working in the southwestern part of Colombia and are being pushed

farther and farther into Venezuela and Ecuador by the Colombia police. Cano took a hard line

against the Colombian government and made sure that he had military offensives to prevent them

from pushing the FARC any further. The pushing of the FARC into these regions has created

strained relationships between Venezuela and Ecuador. They are less harsh on the guerrillas but

will still send top level combatants back to Colombia if they are found in the country.

With the 4 leaders dead Ivan Marques, a former UP congressman is thought to take over

now. While he will be beneficial to keeping the community together, it is difficult to say what

effect he will have on the FARC. The biggest issues pertaining to the death of all the centralized

leadership is that the peace talks with the FARC will become more difficult. There will be less of

a group to talk to and they will have less incentive to talk to the government towards peace

because of the murders they were experiencing.

With less of a leader, the FARC may become more of a criminal element. They might not

have the leadership to teach them the politics of their situation so they may revert to drug

smuggling or the like to maintain control. Without central leadership they could become very

dangerous. The FARC have said that Peace in Colombia will not be born from any guerrilla

demobilization, but the abolition of the causes that gave birth to the uprising. There is a political


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line which will be continued. With this statement, the political line will be more difficult to

define without a leader.

While it is difficult to tell whether peace talks will commence, the new mayor of Bogota,

Gustavo Petro will plan on holding discussions with the FARC over the next coming months. He

is an old M-19 leader and intends to use his understanding of the guerrilla movements to improve

the peace talks with the FARC and ELN.68

Illegal Economy (Drugs and Gold) Kristen Wolf

Since the global economic crisis, the gold mining business in Colombia has skyrocketed.

Because gold is a commodity and an easily taxable good, the BACRAS and the guerrillas have

started to use the mining business to gain more of an income. They have teamed up with local

businesses to be the strongmen to make sure that nothing happens to the gold business. They

have been killing locals who are in opposition and making sure that nothing stands in the way of

them and the gold. This causes problems for the people in the towns because they are being

displaced from their homes. This means they usually have to move to the slums in the cities

where they are in poverty and have no way out. It disrupts their way of life, their culture, their

homes, and the economics of the region. The gold rush will not last long as prices are bound to

fall at some point. Once the prices fall, the business will be of no use to the gangs. After this,

they will move on to something else. The farc have moved away from drug dealing and have

moved into the gold trading because it is easier and more lucrative.69

International Relations Kristen Wolf

In April, Santos signed a treaty with Venezuela saying that they would start fighting the

rebels and sharing intelligence. This is a great idea because the rebels have often times used

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Venezuela and Ecuador as a refuge to work on their illegal activities. Ecuador has not been very

harsh on them yet, but will start to take a harder stance against the guerrillas in the coming

months. This will be good because then the guerrillas will have less of a leg to stand on. They

also will not be able to work as much in Ecuador. 70

COLOMBIAS ECONOMY by Kyle Johnson

The economy of Colombia is important to South America. It has come a long way

despite many changes in government, violence caused by paramilitaries, and guerillas, and

illegal drug operations. Colombias economy has significantly strengthened in the last 2

decades, and it has even gone as far as finally reaching a free trade deal with the United States. I

will begin this portion of the paper by giving a brief overview of the economy of Colombia. I

will then turn my focus to Colombias exports such as coffee, coal, and precious stones and

metals. Then I will discuss the imports of Colombia, and the trade deficit with the United States.

Next, I will diverge from the formal aspect of the economy and discuss the illicit drug trade in

Colombia. Finally I will discuss the United States-Colombia Free Trade Agreement with the

United States and the pros and cons of the deal.

Overview of Colombias Economy Kyle Johnson

The following is a summary of the Colombian economy provided by Travel Document

Systems. Colombia is a free market economy with many economic ties to the United States. In

the early 1990s, the president at the time, Cesar Gaviria introduced Apertura to Colombia,

which was his way of liberalizing the economy. He reduced tariffs, deregulated the financial

sector, allowed privatization of many state owned entities, and introduced a more liberal

exchange rate on foreign currency. This allowed for more foreign investment. Later under the

Uribe administration, there were many reforms such as on taxes, pensions, and budgets. As far

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as taxes go, however, Colombia still maintains one of the highest tax rates in Latin America.

Colombia roughly had 5% economic growth from 2002 to 2007 that was the result of a domino

effect beginning with an increase in security and export growth. Unfortunately, economic

growth was around 2.5% in 2008, and around zero in 2009. This was due to the global economic

downturn.71

Colombia is the most industrially diverse member of the Andean Countries. It has five

large industrial towns; Bogota, Medellin, Cali, Barranquilla, and Bucaramanga. Colombian

industries include mining, hydrocarbons, textiles, leather, agribusiness, which includes coffee,

processed food and drink, plastics, chemicals and petrochemicals, cement, construction, iron and

steel, and metalworking. A small service economy is also on the rise. Colombia, due to its

geography and location is perfect for many crops. All regions have forest products. In the

warmer climates you will find for example, cacao, sugarcane, and coconuts. The more temperate

regions are home to coffee, flowers, pears, etc. The cooler elevations have wheat, potatoes,

poultry, dairy, etc.72

Colombia is a large trading partner with the United States. It is the largest agricultural

export market after NAFTA. In 2009, Colombian imports from the United States were down, and

United States imports from Colombia were also down. The United States is Colombias largest

trading partner.73

Colombia has many mining and energy resources. Is has notable coal and gas reserves.

Currently, Colombia can refine 323,000 barrels of gas a day. Colombia has the fifth largest

amount of crude oil reserves in Latin America. Colombias petroleum sector has recently become

highly liberalized, which has led to more exploration and production contracts. Colombia is the

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worlds fifth largest exporter of coal, and the largest in Latin America. Colombia also is a leader

in the world in the production of emeralds, and Colombia produces significant quantities of gold,

platinum, and silver.74

The United States accounts for the largest amount of foreign direct investment. Most of

the investment is in manufacturing, mining and energy. The only things that are banned from

foreign direct investment are defense, national security, and disposal of hazardous wastes.75

Some examples of foreign investment projects are in the energy sector, specifically in oil fields,

coal fields, and mobile phone service. I believe that foreign investment by the United States is

why the United States is Colombias largest trading partner.

Some statistics on the economy of Colombia: GDP in 2008 was valued at $140.8 billion

with year 2000 being a base year. The annual growth rate was of 2009 is -.1%. Per Capita GDP

at Purchasing Power Party according to the IMF in 2009 was $8,205, but nominally it was

$5,165. Government spending accounted for 27.6% of GDP. In 2008 industry accounted for

19% of GDP, Agriculture was 8%, Services were 64%, and taxes made up the remaining 9% of

GDP. As of 2008, exports totaled about $37 billion, and imports were $39 billion. Unfortunately

this would have given Colombia a trade deficit, which in 2008 would have not have been good

considering the looming economic downturn.76

Moving forward a few years, GDP is now valued at $288 million. (google GDP link). I

take this to mean that the economy did very well for itself. It did struggle briefly during the

recession but it seems to be on a good path now. Also, as can be inferred from the graph, during

the 1960s through the 1990s, there was little economic growth. Then all of a sudden the graph

grows very rapidly. This was, as mentioned previously, due to apertura, or economic

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liberalization. The Colombian economy saw a 4.3% growth rate in the GDP in 2010. This ranks

Colombia 87th in the world in terms of GDP real growth rate. In 2010, the GDP per capita

considering purchasing power parity (PPP) was $9,800,77

and nominally it was $6,225.78

The

GDP per capita ranks Colombia 111th in the world. Also in 2010, the GDP composition has

changed. Now agriculture makes up 9.2%, industry accounts for 37.6% and services have

decreased to 53.1%.

The labor force of Colombia stands at 21.78 million people. Its rank in the world is 30th.

Within the labor force, agriculture accounts for 18%, industry is 13% and services are 68%. The

unemployment rate is at 11.8%. This ranks Colombia 126

th

in the world.

79

The government of Colombia takes in revenues in excess of $70 billion, but they spend

more than $80 billion giving them a budget deficit. Colombias budget deficit ranks 88th

in the

world.80 The inflation rate on consumer prices is 2.3% as of 2010, and the central bank discount

rate is 5% ranking it 68th in the world. Commercial banks lend at a rate of almost 10% which

gives is a rank of 75th in the world.81

Poverty in the country has steadily decreased since 2002. According to World Bank

Development Indicators the poverty headcount ratio at the national poverty line is currently at

37.2%. That means that 37.2% of the population lives below the poverty line. The survey was

done using subgroups and extrapolated to the entire population. Since 2002, when the rate was

just under 50%, it has been steadily declining to its present rate82). This is very good for

Colombia. The more the population moves out of poverty, the better. Unfortunately, I did not

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find data on the makeup of the subgroups. I think it is important to know who makes up these

subgroups that are surveyed because I want to know if all marginalized people in society are

accurately represented in this survey.

The World Bank has data on doing business in Colombia. The data is essentially

forecasted for the following year, thus the data is dated for 2012. The data measures the ease of

doing business within a certain country, in our case, Colombia, and it is measured out of 183

countries. Colombia seems to do pretty well. Overall, the ease of doing business ranks

Colombia 42nd

in the world. Colombia ranks 65th

in the world in terms of starting a business.

They rank poorly, 134

th

, in getting electricity to a business. They rank extremely well, 5

th

, in

terms of protecting investors. Colombia also ranks poorly, 149th, on enforcing contracts.

However, they rank well again, 12th

, in regards to resolving insolvency in a business. I guess this

means that Colombia is good at raising capital when a business needs it. Colombian businesses

also seems to be getting much better at paying taxes. In 2011 they were ranked 120th, but for

2012 they are ranked at 95th. It is not good but it is getting better.83

Exports Kyle Johnson

Colombia is a producer of several major exports. Colombian exports electricity,

petroleum, natural gas, coffee, coal, nickel, emeralds, apparel, bananas, cut flowers, and an

assortment of gold, silver, and platinum. Let us take a look at some of these individual exports.

Electricity is exported at a rate of 1.473 billion kWh per year. Electricity is produced

mainly by hydropower, and thermal power. Colombia ranks 48th

in the world in terms of

electricity production. Petroleum is produced at a rate of 800,100 barrels per day. It ranks 26th

in the world in terms of petroleum production and 33rd

in export capacity. Colombia in turn

exports 400,700 barrels per day. Natural gas is also produced in the country. Colombia

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produces 10.49 cubic meters of natural gas a year, and it exports 1.8 billion cubic meters a year.

It ranks 42nd in terms of production in the world, and 35 th in terms of exporting. 84

In regards to commodities, Colombias most famous export is coffee. Coffee was

introduced to the Colombian economy in the early part of the 1800s. Colombian coffee is known

as Robusta. There are many types of Coffee that are cultivated including Bourbon, Typica,

Caturra, and Maragogype. The Colombian Coffee Federation has well promoted the coffees of

Colombia. The coffee beans of Colombia are flavorful, heavy, and have an intense aroma.

Colombia produces about 12% of the coffee in the world. Brazil is the only country in South

America that produces more. Colombia is also now the 3

rd

largest producer of coffee behind

Brazil and Vietnam. There are also several regions in Colombia that produce coffee. The two

main regions are the central region and the eastern mountainous region. The central region is

made up of Medillin, Armenia, and Manizales. The eastern mountainous region is made up of

Bogota and Bucaramanga. Coffee in the central region is known for how heavy it is, and its

flavor, and acidity. The eastern mountainous region coffee is rich in flavor and also heavy

bodied. 85

Coal is the next important export I will discuss. Colombia has the largest coal reserves in

Latin America. In 2010, output of coal was roughly 74 million tons, an increase since 2009, but

less than what the government wanted. With that, Colombian exports of coal for 2010 stood at

just less than 70 million tons.86 Also, Colombia ranks 5th in terms of coal exports in the world.

As one can probably tell thus far, Colombia is well endowed with many natural resources

and minerals. Colombia used to lead the world in export of emeralds but that production has

84http://wp.me/p1Qq3f-8x CIA Factbook Colombia85http://wp.me/p1Qq3f-8u Coffeesearch.org, Colombian Coffee Beans

86http://wp.me/p1Qq3f-8c Wall Street Journal, Colombia Produced 74.35 Million Tons Of Coal In 2010


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fallen in recent years, though Colombia is still a major exporter. Approximately 90% of

emeralds are bound for exports.87

Finally, this graph88

shows what percentage, over time, exports were a portion of GDP.

In 2010, exports made up 16.29%. In 2009 it was 16.13%. In 2008 it was 18.02%. The graph

shows a many ups and downs in the trend. From year to year the exports seemed to have

fluctuated since GPD itself seemed to only have grown. The export breakdown of countries to

which Colombia chiefly sends products is as follows: The United States accounts for 42% of

Colombian exports, followed by the European Union at 12.6%. Then there is China at 5.2%,

finally followed by Ecuador at 4.5%. Venezuela used to be a very important trading partner with

Colombia but not lately.

Imports Kyle Johnson

Colombia imports a wide variety of products from other countries. It imports electricity,

oil, industrial and transportation equipment, consumer goods, chemicals, paper products, and

fuels.89

Electricity is imported at a rate of 1.396 billion kWh. It imports less electricity than it

produces so it has no trade deficit on this product. Colombia ranks 54th in the world in terms of

electricity consumption. Colombia also imports some oil into the country. It imports 6,045

barrels per day. This gives it a world ranking of 152nd. As stated earlier, Colombia is an

exporter of natural gas but it does not import any kind of natural gas. This gives Colombia the

lowest ranking in the world among many countries that do not import natural gas.

Colombia imports construction and transportation equipment. Much of this equipment is

used in oil and natural gas field operations. Chemicals are also used heavily in oil and gas

87http://wp.me/p1Qq3f-89 Nations Encyclopedia, Colombian Mining88http://wp.me/p1Qq3f-8l Exports Percent of GDP89http://wp.me/p1Qq3f-8x CIA Factbook-Colombia


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operations. The remainders of imports are general goods for consumers, paper products, and

fuels.90

Imports as a percentage of GDP over time greatly varies in Colombia. The import

percentage is 16.98%, as of 2010. In 2009 it was 20.27%. Before that, it was just a very

sporadic up and down trend. Again, I feel that this is strange because there was constant growth

in GDP over time.91

The Import breakdown of countries from which Colombia imports products

is as follows: Colombia imports 25.5% of its products from the United States, thus this figure

paired with the export percentage effectively makes the United States Colombias largest trading

partner. The next largest importer is China at 13.4%, followed by Mexico at 9.4%, Brazil at

5.9% and Germany at 4.1%. To end, in 2010, exports were valued higher than imports: roughly

$40 billion versus $38 billion. This gives Colombia a more than balanced trade deficit. This is

good for the Colombian economy because right now the do not have to worry about finding ways

to balance their trade operations.92

Illicit Drugs Kyle Johnson

Now I want to address an informal sector of the economy. The illicit drug trade is a huge

problem in Colombia. There are not exact figures for how much revenue the drug trade brings

in, however there are many projections. Colombia grows coca, which is used to make cocaine,

poppies, which are used to make heroin, cannabis for marijuana. Colombia remains the worlds

largest producer of cocaine. Much of the cocaine that is produced in Colombia is eventually

bound for the United States and other large international markets. This is also the case with

Heroin. Significant portions of revenues from these drugs are then laundered in Colombia in the

black market peso exchange. The production of drugs in Colombia has declined in recent years.

90 IBID91http://wp.me/p1Qq3f-8o Imports percent of GDP92http://wp.me/p1Qq3f-8x CIA Factbook-Colombia


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For instance, from 2008 to 2009 there was a 3% decrease in the amount of cocaine produced in

Colombia. Unfortunately, even though production has fallen in Colombia, the demand is still

there in the markets for which the drugs are bound so the production capacity just picks up in

other countries such as Mexico or Peru.93

Here are some facts about the drug trade in Colombia as told by Business Insider. The

drug trade in Colombia is worth upwards of $10billion. It is largest in the world with the

exception of Afghanistan. It only accounts for about 1% of GDP when it used to account for

around 6% in the 1980s. This is due largely to an increase in the formal economy. Colombia

accounts for 43% of coca growth worldwide. Colombian and Mexican cartels made around $4

billion from exporting drugs to the United States. Because of the war on drugs, Colombia has

increased its spending on defense up to $12 billion. Almost 90% of the cocaine that is in the

United States comes from Colombia. Colombians controlled drug distribution channels in 40

cities in the United States in 2008. Coca is grown in Colombia on about 68,000 hectares, which

is approximately 168,000 acres. That means that concaine grows on about 153,000 football

fields. Colombia produced 410 metric tons of cocaine in 2010.94

The war on drugs in Colombia is far from over and it has led to much violence in the

countryside, but Colombia needs to continue to work on this problem. It is true that if there were

no demand then Colombia would not need to supply it, but I do not think the notion is that

simple. The United States hopes to bring Colombia in as a long term trading partner. It is has

begun to do with the passage of the Colombian FTA. This may make it easier for drugs to enter

the United States. It has yet to be determined but it is a possibility. Also the United States is

93 IBID94http://wp.me/p1Qq3f-83 Business Insider, 11 Shocking Facts about Colombias $10 Billion Drug Industry


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helping Colombia in the war on drugs by proving funds, but as I said earlier, Colombia has to

step up and tackle this problem with more force.

United States-Colombian Free Trade Agreement Kyle Johnson

The final aspect of the economy of Colombia that I want to discuss is the newly

implemented United States-Colombian FTA. The Colombian FTA is a deal with the United

States that will increase trade between the two countries, which will foster growth for both

economies. This deal has been in the works since 2006 and was finally passed in the United

States Congress, the last hurdle, on October 12, 2011. This agreement will eliminate tariffs and

barriers on goods between the two countries.

Much of the following information is based on information from the Colombian Embassy

in the United States. The trade agreement would immediately remove 80 percent of duties on

consumer and industrial goods from the United States. In 5 years, 7% more duties would be

removed, and by 10 years, all duties would be removed. The reason this is helpful is because by

removing duties on goods and services from the United States, the agreement can potentially

give exporters from the United States a competitive edge. This agreement is also helpful because

once the United States-Colombia Defense Cooperation Agreement was signed; Venezuela closed

its border to Colombian exports. Venezuela used to be the largest trade partner with Colombia.95

There are some challenges that face the trade agreement. Even though trade between the

United States and Colombia has increased over the past decade, there has been a decline in

imports of United States good by Colombia. Also, there has been a decline in Colombian

imports of United States Agricultural products. A good example of this is that in 2009, the

United States was Colombias largest supplier of wheat at 46%, but in 2008 it was at 72%.96

As

95http://wp.me/p1Qq3f-8B Colombiaemb.org, A Trade and Investment Partnership: Colombia and the U.S.96 IBID


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you can see, the trade agreement will go a long way to ensure that the United States market will

stay competitive in regards to Colombia.

Finally, there are some controversies surrounding the passage of the trade agreement.

First, critics of the agreement say that there are many labor rights abuses that need to be

addressed, and also many in Colombia think that they will lose leverage in other trade deals that

they have with other countries. As a nod to the near past, Colombia lost a major trading partner,

Venezuela, for signing an agreement with the United States. I realize that this result had nothing

to do with an economic agreement between Colombia and the United States, but I just think that

Colombia should realize what is at stake when they sign agreements with other countries.

MAJOR SOCIAL ISSUES by Senay Imre

Throughout history, violence is observed as the key political tactic applied on people to

oppress, control, subjugate, and dominate in order to serve and preserve self-interest. Violence in

Colombia has been an ongoing outcome of conflict of interests, and thus has become an

unsolvable knot that prevents the countrys economic, political and social developmental

progress. Social issues that emerge due to the armed conflict have tremendous effects on

civilians. From displacement of people to the spread of AIDS, from child labor to child death,

from child recruitment to attacks on teachers; armed conflict is responsible for the creation of

hapless social order in the Republic of Colombia. Owning to the ongoing and brutal nature of the

armed conflict, the formation of pernicious social outcomes such as IDPs, insufficient health and

education services becomes an inevitable outcome. My research will lay out the extensive human

rights abuses that take place due to the calamitous nature of armed conflict and will analyze the

countrys struggle for the development of its social services.

Education Senay Imre


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Education is an essential tool in the development of welfare, fighting poverty and the

transition of communities into larger societies in the long term. The development of educational

tools in a nation means the development of individuals capacities so that they will function well

in society without being oppressed, marginalized or humiliated. Simple logic tells us that if

individuals are educated, they are less likely to be dependents, and more likely to exercise the

political and economic rights afforded by their communities. However countries like Colombia

has been struggling in making the transition mentioned above due to political instability rooted

from the continuous armed conflict that has been taking place since early 19th century.

The prolonged domestic conflict among the Marxist influenced guerrilla movements and

far-right paramilitary groups is one of the major issues in Colombia. These groups involvement

in criminal acts forms the countrys major social, political and economic problems and prevents

its improvement. Their continuous criminal acts such as extreme violence towards civilians, drug

trafficking, human rights violations, child recruitment are threat to countrys well-being. Dealing

with fear of violence on a daily basis creates an unstable and insecure environment that forces

Colombians to take actions like displacement, migrations, giving up their basic rights as

education and many others.

Due to armed conflict, the countrys education system, especially the secondary education

(ages between 12 to17) has been affected negatively. Secondary education is considered the

backbone of the educational system. According to studies done by economists, primary

education when combined with secondary education has a higher return on the economic

development. Providing primary education without advancing to secondary education has the

same effect on the economy as not attending school at all. Thus enrollment and investment on

secondary education is essential for the economic development of a nation. However, Colombia


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has been struggling to increase the secondary education enrollment and completion rate due to

the presence of the prolonged armed conflict.

Every citizen of Colombia is obligated to basic education by law. Primary basic education

starts from 1st grade and ends in the 5th grade, most students start primary basic education at the

age of 5. Secondary education has two section; basic secondary which is the first step after

primary education. It starts at the 6th grade and ends in the 9th grade. Second section is called

the mid secondary, 10th and 11th grade, where students choose their area of interest such as

academic ,technical, business , etc. Students spend ages of 11 to the 17 in the secondary

education. Most of the university degrees last 5 years and students need a test called ICFES to

attend a university.97

Despite the ongoing domestic violence, the country has been recently experiencing a

positive outlook. It has shown a steady improvement and is determined to reach its MDG of

having a 100% primary education enrollment rate (universal primary education) by 2015. There

has been a decent increase in the level of net enrollment rate until 2000. In 2005, the primary

enrollment rates were close to 110% and secondary education increased from 72% to 88% and a

decrease in the drop-out is also observed for every school grade.(charts from other one) When

we look at the completion rate, we can see a steady increase from the year 1991 to 2009.

97http://wp.me/p1Qq3f-n- Education system in Colombia


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School enrollment; secondary (% net) in Colombia


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On the other hand, secondary education has been considerably low compared to primary

education. Years between 1999 and 2004 experienced pretty low enrollment rates; however the

increase in recen

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