GLOBAL NEWS
Columbia
Despite new calls for peace, violence raged this spring as government forces and two rival guerrilla groups battled each other. The guerrillas control approximately 40% of the countryside. They are staying well-financed thanks to payments received for protecting the billion dollar Colombian drug industry.
With over 250,000 murders in the last decade and kidnappings becoming more common by the week, many Colombians are choosing to leave the country permanently.
One estimate has 350,000 leaving Colombia last year alone, with educated professionals and wealthier citizens leading the exodus---people Colombian society cannot afford to lose.
The political violence goes back almost 100 years but the drug boom of the 1980’s gave greater financial power (and more weapons) to the guerrilla fighters.
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