Colombia Defence and Security Report Q4 2011

It remains to be seen whether the three months to the regional elections that are due to take place in Colombia in October 2011 turn out to be the turning point in the government’s efforts to suppress the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (FARC) and other leftist insurgents. A key development in mid-2011 was the introduction of a new security policy by President Juan Manuel Santos. Unlike the Democratic Security policy of the administration of President Santos’ predecessor Alvaro Uribe (in which he served as defence minister), the new policy focuses on urban problems in general and the bandas criminales in particular. Browse All: Defence and Security Market Research Reports The new policy coincides with three important new pieces of legislation. The Ley de Víctimas, which was promugated in June 2011, recognises the potential for monetary compensation to the families of around 4mn people killed and wounded by the insurgents since the 1980s (and by other protagonists such as rightist militias and rogue elements of the governments’ own forces). Importantly, the new law does not include official recognition of FARC. The Ley de Tierras, which was also promulgated in June 2011, provides for wholesale restitution of land to those families who were forced off their properties as a result of the conflict.rnGiven that one of the root causes of internal insecurity in Colombia is inequality in income distribution which is closely associated with inequality in land ownership, this law should have a very positive impact over the long-term. A third piece of legislation involves a dramatic reallocation of royalty revenues from minerals and energy in favour of resource-poor departments. Finance minister Juan Echeverry has said that half of royalty revenues will be applied to poverty reduction programmes; we see this as a favourable development as well. Meanwhile, the new security policy also comes at a time that the Colombian Defence and Security government is placing more emphasis on strengthing diplomatic (and trade) ties with countries other than the US. During mid-2011, defence minister Rodrigo Rivera took part in discussions with the G-8 country leaders in Paris. More crucially, he undertook extensive negotiations with his Brazilian and Ecuadorean counterparts in relation to bilateral cooperation on the respective frontiers. The significance of the discussions with Brazil is increased by the investment and effort that that government is placing on boosting border security. The significance of the discussions with Ecuador is that that country now appears to be far less hospitable territory to any elements of FARC that remain. It is only about three years since diplomatic links between Ecuador and Colombia were broken as a result of an attack by the latters’ armed forces on a major FARC base in the former. As a result of that attack, the Colombian government came into possession of the data files of a member of FARC’s top leadership, who had been killed in the fighting. The data files were turned over to the International Institute of Strategic Studies (IISS), who published a comprehensive report on them in May 2011. The IISS conclusion, with which we agree, is this: while the files clearly show a high (if variable) level of cooperation between FARC on one hand and the governments of Ecuador and Venezuela on the other), it appears unlikely that the administration of President Santos will say or do much now. Essentially, too much trade, and a vast improvement in relations (especially between Ecuador and Colombia) are at stake. Related Reports: Kazakhstan and Central Asia Defence and Security Report Q4 2011Canada Defence and Security Report Q3 2011