Colombian Leader Promotes Crop Change to Curb Drug Violence

BOGOTA, Colombia — Colombian President Gustavo Petro outlined an initiative on Monday aimed at curbing coca cultivation in the Catatumbo region, which has been marred by insurgent violence. The plan involves compensating farmers to incentivize them to transition from coca to lawful crops.

During a cabinet session, Petro emphasized the intention to eradicate 25,000 hectares of coca over a period of 140 days in an effort to reduce conflict and undermine rebel factions benefiting from narcotics trafficking. Catatumbo, as one of Colombia’s principal cocaine production zones, spans approximately 55,000 hectares of coca cultivation.

Petro highlighted that Catatumbo farmers would voluntarily dismantle their coca fields, receiving government payments as they shift to farming legal crops. Meanwhile, the Colombian military will maintain operations against local rebels, and the government will work on infrastructural improvements to help farmers move their legitimate produce to marketplace.

“Colombian peace hinges on coca growers willingly choosing to eradicate their crops,” Petro announced at the cabinet meeting.

Earlier in January, over 36,000 residents were forced from their homes in Catatumbo, a mountainous area home to about 400,000 people along the Venezuelan border. This displacement followed coordinated assaults by the National Liberation Army (ELN) against civilians they accused of collaborating with a rival faction, the FARC-EMC. The violence resulted in roughly 80 fatalities, leading the Colombian government to pause peace negotiations with the ELN and enact a 90-day emergency decree, granting authority to temporarily suspend certain civil liberties in the region without legislative consent.

Petro alleged that the insurgents are attempting to dominate the area to secure control over coca plants and trafficking routes.

The United Nations Office on Drug and Crime reports that Colombian cocaine production has been on the rise since 2013. As of October, coca bush cultivation was up by 10% in 2023, with potential coca output surging by 53% from the previous year.

A 2016 peace treaty between the Colombian government and the country’s largest rebel faction, the FARC, sought to reduce coca cultivation in rural locales. However, smaller armed groups have since filled the void left by the FARC’s retreat, continuing to promote the burgeoning cocaine trade.