New Waves of Displacement in Colombia

[Judi Lynn]

New Waves of Displacement in Colombia
Friday 04 September 2009

by: Charlie Devereux | GlobalPost
As the Colombian army steps up its offensive against paramilitaries and guerrillas, more and more people are getting pushed off their land. Some have headed for other parts of Colombia while others have fled the country. GlobalPost looks at the issue from the Venezuelan and Colombian sides of the border.

San Cristobal, Venezuela - Carlos Gonzalez still bears the scars of captivity at the hands of Colombian paramilitaries.

A left eyebrow disfigured by a rifle butt and the imprints of chains around his wrists are visible reminders of the 28 days he spent imprisoned in a hut in the hills above Cali, Colombia, awaiting execution.

Today, he lives in Venezuela, after a four-year journey spent fleeing his captors' vengeance.

His kidnapping occurred at the height of the three-pronged war between the Colombian government, left-wing guerrillas and right-wing paramilitaries.

The Colombian government claims to have made large strides in recent years in its war against the armed groups. But the flow of Colombian refugees across the border is actually increasing, according to figures from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, which analysts said suggests that an end to the war is not as close as Bogota claims.

The Colombian army is pushing paramilitaries and guerrillas into new areas, creating waves of displacement as these groups attempt to take control of the new zones. Many of those fleeing choose Venezuela because its laws are some of the most favorable in Latin America for refugees. Yet many still struggle to obtain services to which they are entitled. UNHCR estimates that there are about 200,000 Colombian refugees currently in Venezuela. Some, like Gonzalez, have successfully applied for asylum, but many live unregistered on the porous 1,300-mile border between Colombia and Venezuela, often exploited by farm and mine managers or, if they have a business, "taxed" by paramilitary and guerrilla groups that have spilled over from Colombia.

More:
http://www.truthout.org/090609X

[roody]

1. And paid for by you and me via Plan Colombia.