Violence undermines Essay Example for Free

Violence undermines Essay Violence undermines the democratic reforms and the basic human rights implementation as it is the greatest threat to public safety in South America. Gun violence rose sharply especially after the internal armed struggles as well as the emergence of drug trafficking in the late 1970s and 80s. So far, Columbia is the only country that is engaged in a declared conflict in South America. Major causes of violence are the socio economic inequalities, corruption and easy availability of small and light guns and weapons. There are incidences of small arms proliferation and misuse in South America. Most of these small arms are produced in Brazil and Argentina. (countrystudies. us). Some states like Bolivia and Paraguay exercise laxity in terms of firearms regulation and this promotes or rather facilitates violence in the region. Weak border control as well as the constant failure to implement the existing legal procedures or instruments also perpetuates the violence instances in South America. There is increased illicit trafficking of illegal weapons which are used to practice criminality. Continued insecurity among the public necessitates the demand and the use of weapons in the society. The information that is available concerning the arms trade in most South American countries is quite unreliable making it difficult to develop programs that would be effective in ensuring public safety by the civil societies. The issue of weapons remains quite unpopular on the political agendas despite the serious implications they cause to the countries in question. (americas. irc-online. org). All in all there emerged increased efforts through campaigns to reduce the rates of demand that people have on firearms as well as advocacy ensured to promote the tightening and adherence of gun laws to reduce the flow of guns in the region. Effective research should be encouraged to ensure that the acquisition of correct data on gender victimization as well as routes that ensure illegal trafficking of drugs and other weapons are collected. More efforts need to be channeled into harmonizing gun laws in the region. There should be increased awareness regarding the risks that are involved or associated with firearms usage and possessions. Public gun destruction and the monitoring of the flow of weapons should also be encouraged as an effort to reduce violence. (www. iansa. org). Colombia’s political system is known for its long history on party politics, fair and regular elections as well as its adherence to the respect for political and civil rights. The major political parties are the liberals and the conservatives who compete and alternate as the governing party. Despite its increased popularity for democracy, Colombia is well known for its high instances of political violence. It is amazing how Colombian is capable of producing hospitable people who are dynamic and intelligent yet it also harbors a lot of violence. Peace is a rare but also a very precious commodity that is lacking in Colombia. Conservatives versus liberal political violence saw the once peaceful parts of Colombia soaked in blood. From 1899 to 1902 approximately 100,000 Colombians lost their lives due to inter party strife that lasted for over 1000 days. The La Violencia, another inter party war from 1948 to 1966 saw the death of approximately 200,000 Colombians. Guerilla warfare also saw the loss of lives of at least 70,000 lives in 1984. The violence entailed the left wing insurgence and terrorism, narcoterrorism and the right wing paramilitary activities. Since 1948 incidence that involved the death of Jorge Gaitan through an assassination as well as the loss of 2,000 lives Colombia was constitutionally authorized as a state of siege or estatuto de seguridad. It had to deal appropriately with its civil disturbances, rates of insurgence as well as terrorism. Jorge Gaitan was a liberal leader and a populist and he was against the Colombian Oligarch. His assassination resulted into a revolt that saw the death of many people. The revolt was known as El Bogotazo and it graduated into La Violencia. The state persecuted many people necessitating the liberal and the communists to hide in the remote areas that seemed inaccessible so as to resist the current predicament. This lasted for more than a decade and most of them regrouped to form FARC in 1966. Its main aim was to act as the armed wing of the communist party. Liberals in FARC created a distinction between it and other guerillas in South America. In the 60’s the combined liberal and communist guerillas were able to come together in liberated zones to form independent republics like the Marquetalia. They needed to defend or protect themselves from the rich land owners who had marginalized them and took their land forcing them away from fertile agricultural lands. Colombian guerillas were formed to act as self defense against violence from those who were in power. (americas. irc-online. org). May 1984 had much significance in Colombian history. The signing of a peace agreement by the president Betancourt led to a ceasefire as well as the creation of Unidad Patriotica (UP) that made it possible for all to participate in elections. Efforts of the UP were however curbed by the joint actions of drug dealers, paramilitaries as well as part of the state members or officials. They joined efforts and killed thousands of UP sympathizers and leaders. In 1986 there was a peace process where M-19, EPL, PRT and Quintin Lame Armed Movement as well as FARC and ERN formed the Simon Bolivar Coalition. However on the day that a constitutional assembly was to be convened as part of the peace process the army launched an offensive against the legendary Green House which was the secretariat of the guerilla group. In 1986 under president Andres Pastrana there was the creation of a new peace process. It ensured that there was the creation of a 40,000 km2 demilitarized zone. However this lasted for only 4 years as intensive accusation that FARC participated in drug trafficking and the forceful recruitment of minors saw its coming to a halt. President Pastrana in the meantime was negotiating the Plan Colombia which was geared towards empowering or strengthening the state to win the conflict. After the year 2000 when under Uribe’s rule or leadership the situation seemed to move from bad to worse. FARC was forced to retreat and it lost many of its members as well as the military and political initiative. It acquired most of its financing from drugs trade, extortion and kidnapping as well as through cattle rustling from the land owners. This means that to effectively survive they used criminal activities that entailed violence. According to Amnesty International, FARC is accused of violating many human rights. The average Colombians have in most cases had the perception that the wars and consistent conflicts are geared to benefit the rich and powerful in the society at their expense. (www. globalsecurity. or). FARC portrays itself as a revolutionary and popular organization but in the real sense it is surrounded by lack of decency and some countries view it as a terrorist organization that violates human rights and abuses women and hostages. The political violence has taken different perspectives in the sense that it has taken an ideological as well as an economical approach. Violence in the 50’s was to fight against the party’s in power but it later took a different perspective as both the left as well as the right wing groups were involved. A study conducted in 1988 by Columbian academic elites showed that it was quite clear that the Columbian government was losing focus in the fight against the rampant violence in the country. They had studied the killings that had been conducted by drug smugglers, guerilla wars and death squads. They noted that addressing one of the above mentioned issues in exclusion with the others would not see or rather result into the end of violence. They advocated for an all inclusive approach in ensuring that there was efficiency in eradicating violence. Important scholars worth mentioning include Robert H Dix and he attributed the violence trends to the political system that was elitist in nature. Traditional elites compete violently and with a lot of bitterness so as to control the government through liberal as well as the conservative parties. The parties rarely cooperate especially if there is no evidence that the upper class seems threatened. The Colombia Christian parties be they democratic, social democratic or Marxist proved to be weak and in most cases insignificant. However the constitutional amendments and the evolution of Columbia political culture saw to it that the government system was not only highly centralized but also elitist in nature. ( countrystudies. us). Control over the political system was done by the elites at the expense of the middle class, labor as well as the peasants’ classes. The existence of guerilla in the 1980s was a clear indication that the Colombia politics is elitist in nature. Guerilla insurgence in Colombia is the major problem in the country’s political system. The legitimacy problem could be reflected or seen in mass political apathy and increase the rates of voter absenteeism and decreased instances of voter identification with traditional parties as well as the increased urban swing vote. However to preserve and ensure stability, gradual changes were incorporated in the political system. This was more evident in the holding of the first direct and popular mayoral elections in the late 80’s. During this period there was a wide gap between the rich and the poor and the Colombian government failed to be competent enough to solve the issue amicably. The leftist guerilla groups had their leadership, structure and activities well known but on the contrast the rightist activities remains unclear regardless of the fact that it is known to be well organized and active. Almost all of the parties involved in the Columbian politics face violence or threats to violence. They include the elected officials, mayors and other politicians. Threats were also sent to priests, academicians, lawyers and even artists. Most people were threatened after denouncing the rightist campaigns but for others there were no clear motives behind threats. The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Columbia (FARC) is known for its threats to municipal authorities. According to Gilberto Toro who heads the Colombian Federation of Municipalities approximately half of the total number of majors in the country receive threats from FARC. Tens of mayors and councilmen are assassinated across the country. The insecurity problem affects the manner in which business is conducted in the region as most business men opt to locate their premises near the capital centers where it seems safer or more secure and this hinders diversification. (Osterling J,1989). There are also many instances of unlawful and extra judicial killings. Politically motivated killings remain considerably high and most of them are not committed by state actors. However there are members of the state who or security officers who commit unlawful killings continuously for instance according to the Center for investigation and Popular Research there were responsible for 92 cases of intentional homicides in the first six months of 2001. Paramilitary forces are responsible for many politically motivated and unlawful killings. Such incidences are more prominent in areas where there is minimal or complete absence of a strong government and where their ideologies are refuted through guerillas. People who are most targeted by the paramilitaries include journalists, human rights activists, labor leaders, community activists, local politicians as well as indigenous leaders and all who seem to side with the guerillas. Journalists that seemed to challenge drug barons received threats or were killed. Again as most judges were intimidated or terrorized, gave up gearing their efforts in ensuring that the law was followed to the letter. Without the appropriate measures being taken by the criminal justice system the dug mobsters operated with ease. They intimidated the society in such a manner that the criminal justice system only acts as a toothless dog in fighting crime. Membership in the left wing or leftist political organizations ensures that individuals are killed, threatened or even harassed by the paramilitaries. Family members of known guerillas are also attacked. As the guerillas attack the military they are attacked together with their relatives and those who sympathize with them. FARC was against the election of president Uribe as the president and they conducted massive threats to many locally elected officials an act that saw the resignation of over 390 mayors across the country. City council members as well as municipal workers also resigned due to this. Some mayors were obligated on how to carry out their duties through phone calls as well as through the use of messengers from different departments that seemed secure. Although there are high incidences of insecurity and violence surrounding the Colombian politics there are high numbers of candidates who show their interests in politics. (www. acs-onweb). The conservative Roman Catholic has some significant role in the Colombian politics especially regarding the election of the president and also in political socialization of the Colombians. During Alvaro Uribe’s reign there were strict measures in fighting against drug trade and guerillas which resulted into intensive conflicts among the Colombian neighbors. The wide economic gap is evident from the fact that approximately 20% of the total population controls the Colombian economy and this attribute to the intensified conflicts in the region. The violence affects all people in the nation regardless of their racial, social, economical as well as political orientation. (Jorge Osterling, 1989). Although increased rate of violence have been subsiding since 2002, there are still constant attacks that against civilians and most parts of the country remain under guerilla influence. Conflicts are between the government and the non governmental forces. Uncontrolled violence in Colombia affects the country’s democratic institutions. There was well documented evidence that some army officers participated in the rightist death squads. Armed forces were accused of torturing suspected guerillas as well as killing innocent peasants. The rightist objectives were to drive other members out of the political arena forcing them to abandon the democratic struggle as well as to boycott the municipal elections. Rebel movements waged war against the police and army units. Violence then was linked to elections where some were not pleased with the fact that mayors were not to be appointed by the central government but would be elected through elections. Negotiations during the reign of president Belisario brought about the idea that through negotiations the crisis would be settled. It was supported by many as the constant wars had become tiresome. It was therefore agreed that the guerilla ought to join the country’s democracy. However there was need that all the relevant parties to be committed especially the government. As the insecurity rates worsened politicians and most senior officials were forced to use bullet proof vehicles and had heavily armed guards. More security officers were assigned the role of personal protection. This led to there having fewer officers to carryout effective investigations which is an important part in the criminal justice system. The paramilitary phenomenon has taken charge of the state enforcing their rule through bribery co-optation of politicians as well as many incidences of violence. Inefficiency in the fight against such groups is evident in the sense that even after showing their commitment through ceasefires it is still clear that the killings persist. A clear example is the United Self Defense of Colombia in 2002 which continued to kill those it perceived as its enemies. (americas. irc-online. or). As an effort to search for relevant measures to solve the current situation Colombia justice and peace law tried to ensure that justice prevailed and through it paramilitaries were to be sentenced up to eight years if they were found guilty. They were also expected to surrender all the possessions they had acquired illegally. Demobilization was backed up by many as a tool of ensuring that democracy and peace prevailed in the region. However this did not prove to be a sufficient way as the paramilitary kept influencing the country’s politics. In 2003 in Magdalena, Trino Correa became the governor and his opponents had been forced to pull out through paramilitary threats. He was later arrested in 2007 on alleged links with paramilitaries. The March 2006 congressional elections were also faced with much paramilitary intimidation and this saw the entry of several pro-AUC into the legislature. It is estimated that approximately 10 to 20% of the elected senators had paramilitary connections. It also became clear that the paramilitary still exerted much influence and this was revealed by a computer that disclosed how Jorge the AUC commander had authorized the murder of 558 Colombians in the Caribbean department of Atlantico a region where the paramilitary ceasefires were supposed to be in effect. Jorge had also used peasants as his fighters and had bribed the police to continue with the drug trafficking business. He had worked with local politicians and assisted them realize their electoral prospects. This scandal was very embarrassing to the president. (www. unhcr. org). Relatives of state leaders were also linked with paramilitary organizations. Senator Alvaro Araujo, a brother to the foreign minister was arrested on allegations that he had conspired with the AUC in kidnapping a political rival before the 2002 elections. This led to the resignation of the foreign minister. A president’s cousin, Mario Uribe was also accused of having dealings with the paramilitaries He was also a leader of the Colombia democratica a party they had co founded with the president. Some members of this party were accused of involvement with paramilitaries and some like Garcia Alvaro were accused of having orchestrated a massacre in 2000 as well as murder of an electoral official in 1997. (www. colombiajournal. org). To date there is clear indication that there is the existence of a sinister and anti democratic relationship between criminals and the country’s elected representatives. The crisis is a clear indication of the deep sense of the powerlessness that is prevailing.It is evident that violence affects or rather influences politics in South America and more so in Colombia. References: Global Security. Colombia. Retrieved on 9th April 2008 from http://www. globalsecurity. org/military/world/colombia/colombia_politics. htm Michael Walker. The Bush Administration’s Hollow Commitment to Colombian Democracy. Retrieved on 9th April 2008 from http://www. colombiajournal. org/colombia271. htm Raul Zibechi. 2008. Americas Program Special Report Military Crisis in South America: The Results of Plan Colombia. Retrieved on 9th April 2008 from http://americas. irc-online. org/am/5107 History of violence. Retrieved on 9th April 2008 from http://www. acs-onweb. de/hd/content/pres_c2_the_media_and_the_internet/history. htm South America. Retrieved on 9th April 2008 from http://www. iansa. org/regions/samerica/samerica. htm U. S. Library of Congress. Government and Politics. Retrieved on 9th April 2008 from http://countrystudies. us/colombia/78. htm UNHCR. Background on political violence in Colombia Retrieved on 9th April 2008 from http://www. unhcr. org/home/RSDCOI/414eef214. html