Colombia Guerrilla and Terrorist Groups
Military policeman, Bogotá
Courtesy Lloyd W. Mansfield
During the late 1980s, four major leftist guerrilla
organizations were operating in Colombia: the
Revolutionary Armed
Forces of Colombia (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de
Colombia--FARC), the 19th of April Movement (Movimiento 19
de
Abril--M-19), the National Liberation Army (Ejército de
Liberación
Nacional--ELN), and the Popular Liberation Army (Ejército
Popular
de Liberación--EPL). A number of smaller, less structured
guerrilla
groups also carried out operations against the government.
These
included the Workers' Self-Defense Movement (Movimiento
Autodefensa
Obrera--MAO), the Workers' Revolutionary Party (Partido
Revolucionario de los Trabajadores--PRT), Free Homeland
(Patria
Libre), and the Quintín Lamé Command. The Quintín Lamé
Command
received substantial support from Colombia's small Indian
population
(see Local Government
, ch. 4). During the late
1980s,
analysts estimated that there were between 8,000 and
10,000
guerrillas. In late 1987, guerrilla-controlled territory
reportedly
included a vast area in the eastern plains, Arauca
Intendancy, the
area at the southern end of the Golfo de Urabá in
Antioquia
Department, southern Huila Department, and most of Caquetá
Department.
In 1984 the FARC, the M-19, and the EPL signed the
cease-fire
agreement that established the vaguely defined National
Dialogue,
designed to help set the terms for the guerrillas'
peaceful
reincorporation into national political life. In 1988 the
Patriotic
Union (Unión Patriótica--UP), which represented the
political arm
of the FARC, was the only group that continued to adhere
to the
terms of the agreement and had reintegrated itself into
the
political process
(see Minor Third Parties
, ch. 4).
Nevertheless,
both government and guerrilla representatives participated
in
efforts to achieve a political settlement in 1988.
During the 1980s, six organizations--the FARC, the
M-19, the
ELN, the EPL, the PRT, and the Quintín Lamé
Command--attempted to
develop comprehensive political and military strategies
through the
National Guerrilla Coordinating Board (Coordinadora
Nacional
Guerrillera--CNG). The drive for unity intensified in the
late
1980s, following a rash of assassinations of guerrillas
and
sympathizers by right-wing groups. As a result, the CNG
was
restructured in late 1987 as the Simón Bolívar Guerrilla
Coordinating Board (Coordinadora Guerrillera Simón
Bolívar).
Right-wing terrorist groups became increasingly active
during
the Barco administration and repeatedly targeted for
assassination
UP members (including many public officials) and members
of
militarily active guerrilla organizations. The guerrillas
justified
their reluctance to comply with government demands that
they
surrender their weapons by referring to the threat posed
by the
terrorists. In 1988 the DAS identified 128 active
right-wing
"paramilitary" groups. Most of these groups were small,
obscure,
and capable of carrying out operations in a given region
within the
country's departments. Several groups, however, had
distinguished
themselves for their national-level operations. The most
prominent
of these were Death to Kidnappers (Muerte a
Secuestradores--MAS)
and The Extraditables (Los Extraditables), both of which
had ties
to the narcotics traffickers.
Data as of December 1988
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