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LATIN AMERICA
International Alert has been working in Latin America since 1994. We focus on the Andean region as a whole, but our operational work is primarily focused in Colombia.
From 1994 to 2004, we conducted research and consultations on small arms control, accompanied peace advocates, supported peace processes with local actors and generated comparative learning in Colombia. In response to the private sector’s role in the region’s conflicts and awareness of their peacebuilding potential, our focus has now shifted to the private sector. Building on our research on the private sector’s peacebuilding potential in Colombia, El Salvador and Guatemala, Alert plans to support similar initiatives in the wider Andean region. This includes engaging Colombian firms and multinationals in a variety of initiatives to prevent conflict and support peacebuilding, such as the UN Global Compact, the Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights and a series of measures falling under the umbrella of corporate social responsibility. By working with the traditionally polarised private sector on these strategies and approaches, we hope to find practices and frameworks for preventing violent conflict and transforming these relationships into genuine partnerships for sustainable development. WE WORK THROUGH
CONTEXT Widespread political and social polarisation has increased throughout Latin America after a brief period of what appeared to be stability, increasing democratisation and private-sector led development. This polarisation is preventing countries in the Andean region from finding formulas for development and governance based on consensus, compromise and attention to the needs of vulnerable populations and communities. Multiple factors can be identified that are sustaining these divisions in the Andean sub-region, such as:
While Colombia is the only Andean country currently experiencing outright armed conflict between guerrilla groups, paramilitaries and state forces, there has been an emergence of other non-state armed groups such as the Alfarista Liberation Army in northern Ecuador thought to be tied to FARC and Venezuela; the Shining Path in Peru that has re-emerged mostly to defend coca trafficking routes in the jungle; the right-wing Camba Nation movement in eastern Bolivia opposed to current president Evo Morales’ economic and agrarian policies; and the training of civilian militias in Venezuela in preparation for possible future US interference. In many cases, the private sector, particularly transnational extractive industry companies, has contributed to the region’s conflicts by seeking favourable access to resources and land while the living conditions of nearby communities stagnate or even deteriorate. This has exacerbated tensions between the private sector and other dimensions of civil society, contributing to political and social polarisation.
 Fundación Ideas para la Paz – Partner organisation Indepaz – Partner organisation Click here to join our mailing list and receive our monthly e-bulletin COLOMBIA
International Alert has been working in Colombia since 1994. We currently focus on engaging the private sector in conflict prevention, peacebuilding and sustainable development initiatives to address the increasing polarisations between this sector and other elements of civil society. There are three main strands to our work:
Over the past decade, Alert has also been involved in accompany Colombian peace advocates in their efforts to support peace processes, and generating comparative learning from other conflict contexts. In addition, we have worked with the Colombian government and civil society to address the proliferation of small arms and light weapons in the country.
CONTEXT Despite being Latin America’s oldest democracy, having significant natural resources and high levels of economic growth, Colombia has witnessed a violent decades-long conflict involving guerrilla and paramilitary forces, characterised by gross violations of human rights and 40, 000 deaths in the last decade alone. The country’s social fabric is further threatened by high levels of poverty and inequality, The conflict is embedded in complex historical legacies such as a lack of national cohesion following independence, a divisive geography, a weak state, class divisions and competition over land. Some of these have been further compounded by the ability of the illegal armed groups to fund their activities through the drugs trade. Although Colombia underwent a successful peace process in the early 1990’s which saw the demobilisation of various smaller guerrilla groups and a rewriting of the constitution, more recent attempts have been less successful. Talks during the Pastrana Administration (1998-2002) collapsed as the government’s Plan Colombia was flawed and the guerrillas failed to adhere to earlier agreements, using a demilitarised zone to re-assert their military capabilities. Pressure on the government intensified as an economic crisis hit at the end of the decade and this subsequently led to the election of Alvaro Uribe in 2002 on the platform of his hard line Democratic Security Policy: labelling the guerrillas 'terrorists' and declaring that he would only negotiate from a position of strength. During the Uribe administration violence has decreased, particularly in urban areas. However, despite formal peace negotiations with the ELN, the flawed paramilitary demobilisation process, a spiraling relationship with the FARC and continued social and political polarisations threaten any signs of stability. A negotiated humanitarian exchange with the FARC is on the political agenda, although no consensus on its conditions exists. It is paramount that the social and political polarisations resulting from decades of violent conflict be urgently addressed by all sectors of society in order to pave the path for a sustainable peace.
Fundación Ideas para la Paz – Partner organisation Indepaz – Partner organisation Click here to join our mailing list and receive our monthly e-bulletin PUBLICATIONS ON LATIN AMERICA Colombia: The challenges of supporting 'alternative' livelihoods opportunities for peacebuilding
Author(s): William Godnick and Diana Klein Maintaining and strengthening the livelihoods of conflict-affected populations during and after violent conflict is high on the agenda of governments and development agencies the world over. This report seeks to present some of the experiences of the Colombian government and the international community’s efforts to generate economic opportunities for conflict-affected populations in Colombia, and reflect on lessons for policy and practice elsewhere. Download pdf | More Information  Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights: Performance Indicators
Author(s): Salil Tripathi, William Godnick and Diana Klein Download pdf | More Information  Principios Voluntarios en Seguridad y Derechos Humanos Indicadores de Desempeño
Author(s): International Alert Download pdf | More Information  Explorando el dividendo de la paz: Percepción de los impactos del conflicto armado en el sector privado colombiano Resultados de una encuesta nacional - Exploring the peace dividend: perceptions of armed conflict impacts on the Colombian private sectorRes
Author(s): Angelika Rettberg Download pdf | More Information  Laying Bridges and Building Capacities: Extractive Industry, Human Rights and Peace (Spanish-language report) / Tendiendo puentes y construyendo capacidades: el Sector Extractivo, Derechos Humanos y Paz
Author(s): Salil Tripathi and William Godnick Download pdf | More Information Fundación Ideas para la Paz – Partner organisation Indepaz – Partner organisation Click here to join our mailing list and receive our monthly e-bulletin |
