How Colombia’s Recent Protests Are Testing the Country’s Fragile Peace

Starting in late April, Colombians took to the streets to protest tax and health-care policies of President Iván Duque Márquez. The violent protests have seen at least 25 people killed and hundreds more injured, with police brutality fueling anti-government dissent across the country. The startling increase of intensity in the protests point to something larger underlying Colombia’s internal dissent: the unresolved 56-year civil war between guerilla groups and the government plays a major role in the current tensions that exist within the country. 

In order to understand the Colombian conflict, it helps to understand the FARC’s formation in the 60s. During the Cold War, as many other Latin American countries were facing communist revolution attempts the FARC was formed in 1964 claiming to represent the interests of the rural, working class, the victims of extreme income inequality. The FARC fought for government redistribution of wealth to Colombia’s working class, while gaining funding from the drug trade and employing guerrilla tactics that included the kidnapping and ransoming of civilians. Throughout the conflict, the FARC has fought against government forces and right-wing paramilitary groups active in the drug trade.

Peace talks between the Colombian government and FARC to resolve the Colombian conflict began in September 2012 in Havana, Cuba. After four years of negotiations, then-President of Colombia Juan Manuel Santos and FARC Commander-in-Chief Timoleon “Timochenko” Jimenez announced that they had reached a final peace agreement—which would enact a bilateral and definite ceasefire —on August 24, 2016. The terms of the agreement would have the FARC end their drug trafficking and give up their weapons to special UN inspectors; however, in turn, FARC leaders would face no jail time and FARC would be given permanent seats in both houses of the Colombian legislature. 

All the agreement needed to be ratified was a referendum with a simple majority to pass. In October 2016, the Colombian people voted in what was expected to be an easy ratification; however, by a narrow margin of 50.21% voting against and 49.78% voting for the peace agreement, the Havana peace deal failed. Parts of the country facing high levels of violence overwhelmingly voted for the peace agreement, while less violent areas voted against it.

There are many reasons as to why Colombians voted against the peace agreement in 2016. Throughout the conflict, the FARC caused countless harm to civilians, explaining why many Colombians opposed the specifics of the peace deal, which granted many benefits to the FARC. However, the FARC’s enemies are not completely absolved from conflict. Right-wing paramilitary groups and government crackdowns caused further discord in the area. Former President Álvaro Uribe, who led a crackdown on the FARC driving them to the initial negotiations, led the opposition to the peace deal. Current President Duque, who was backed by his mentor is Álvaro Uribe, ran his campaign in 2018 on refusing the Havana peace deal. Although the conflict has abated through a ceasefire deal, the lack of a formal resolution creates a fragile peace that is being clearly stressed by the recent protests.

The peace process—which President Duque and his conservative allies have opposed—is one of the main issues fueling the anti-government protests in question. Before the current protests, Colombians began taking to the streets in November 2019 to protest against a variety of issues including  income inequality, police brutality, a proposed COVID-19 related tax and healthcare policies of President Duque, and in favor of furthering the Colombian peace process. 

The National Strike Committee, which includes the major unions involved in the protest, met with President Duque on Monday with no resolution. The acts of police brutality by the right-wing government coupled with the leftist-leaning stance of the protestors creates an ominous outlook for the future of peace in Colombia. With the issues in Colombia such as the extreme income inequality exacerbated by the pandemic being wholly common in the region; one can only hope that this political unrest is not indicative of Latin America in a post-pandemic world. 

Photo via Financial Times