Guerrilla Warfare In Colombia

12 Pages 3038 Words

This research paper is based on the ongoing violence and war led by the guerrilla and organized groups in Colombia. Each of these groups has taken part in acts of civil disobedience, activism, and terrorism. These acts have not only affected the government, but also the country and its people, they have caused an enormous amount of death and destruction throughout the last fifty years. The specific situation that is going to be addressed occurred in June of 2002. According to the article which appeared in Colombia Journal Online, "more than 150 local government officials have resigned due to death threats from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC)." However, that is not the only problem; the article also stated that the Army for National Liberation (ELN) as well as the United Self-Defense Units of Colombia (AUC) have also threatened these political figures by announcing that "any local official who resigns because of the threats [from the FARC] would be considered a `military target'" (Leech "FARC Targets Local Officials"). Guerrilla groups have been in existence for a long time; but they have become much more violent over the years.
Based on the surveys and interviews that were done, it was evident that most people do not agree with the ongoing violence that occurs in Colombia. According to one of the interviewees, "you don't always have to resort to violence - there are better ways to get your point across" (Castillo). Also, they all agreed that trafficking drugs, kidnapping, extortion, etc. were not justifiable ways to raise funds. It was said, by the other interviewee that although "trafficking drugs is going to make them millions of dollars, it is also going to take millions of lives and it is truly not worth it" (Bolivar).

Also, the quotes that were taken from the newspapers, news magazines, and the journal agreed with the paper's point of view. They all included examples which were stated in this paper. Each art...