|
As Colombia's nearly five-decade civil war simmers
on, the country remains the world's third-largest recipient
of U.S. military aid, and has the second-largest displaced
population in the world. The cocaine trade continues to fuel
the armed conflict; there are abundant reports indicating
that the supposedly demobilised paramilitaries, blamed for
the lion's share of the atrocities committed in the civil
war and led by drug lords, have regrouped; and nearly half
of the population lives in poverty. The scandal over ties
with paramilitary groups dogs the Álvaro Uribe government.
Small farmers and indigenous and black communities are often
caught in the crossfire between the guerrillas, the paramilitaries
and the security forces. The conflict's victims are the civilian
population, human rights and truth.
|