Learning to live in peace

Learning to live in peace


Anastasia Moloney
Guardian Weekly

The Hacienda Napoles was once the site of lavish parties, decadent living and million-dollar drug deals, a country estate where the infamous drug kingpin Pablo Escobar entertained mistresses, associates and members of Colombia's elite.

Today the violence that punctuated life here has been replaced with the hope of peace. Instead of cocaine, chilli peppers are set to dominate the local economy and provide jobs for scores of paramilitary fighters who have laid down their weapons. Fourteen years after Escobar was hunted down and shot, the government took over the 2,225-hectare estate in Puerto Triunfo, northern Colombia. The mayor recently handed over part of the estate for government-led agricultural reintegration projects.

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Rightwing paramilitary groups formed in the 1980s to protect businessmen and landowners from guerrilla attacks. They later evolved into death squads responsible for a large proportion of human rights abuses committed during decades of civil strife. Since 2003 more than 31,000 paramilitary fighters have demobilised under a deal between the government of Alvaro Uribe and militia bosses.

The government now faces the challenge of reintegrating former combatants, many of whom have little schooling, back into civilian life.

Raul Gallego, 23, spent five years fighting. Like many, he joined a paramilitary group because he needed the money. He demobilised last year and is grateful to have been given a job tending plants that will turned into chilli powder and sauce. "I never imagined that I would end up as a farmer," he says. "It's a great chance to have a proper job, provide for my son and spend more time with him."

Of the 120 families involved in the programme, about half are former paramilitary fighters, while the remainder includes single mothers and displaced families. At a public meeting hosted by the government a year ago, project leaders and families were selected to participate. Then followed three months of workshops to teach basic farming techniques.

It costs $3,500 a year to reintegrate a former combatant. This programme, funded by a mixture of private and public funding and international aid, is seen as a model for future initiatives. USAid and Cementos Argos, a Colombian cement company, each donated $1.3m. The EU has so far given about $100m to reintegration programmes.

Support from private business is crucial, says Frank Pearl, the presidential high commissioner for economic and social reintegration. "It's a chance for companies to practice social corporate responsibility." There are some 46 reintegration projects in the pipeline, funded in part by the private sector.

But serious obstacles remain. Host communities who have been traumatised by paramilitaries have entrenched prejudices and are reluctant to welcome disarmed fighters as neighbours. Mr Gallego says he feels "no resentment or hard feelings" from the local community and feels accepted. But his experience is unusual.

For Mr Pearl, it is an urgent issue requiring support from society. "We need to get people to stop thinking that this is simply a government problem."

Gaining the trust of demobilised fighters was one of the hardest challenges, says Fernando Calado, from the International Organisation for Migration, who spent a year helping set up the programme. "It's taken time to regain their confidence and trust in the system," he explains. Another problem is finding available land, as ownership in Colombia is concentrated in the hands of a few elite.

Literacy and skills training workshops are also being introduced. But the government admits about 3,800 demobilised fighters are not involved in any state projects. "We know who they are but we don't know what they do during the week," says Mr Pearl.

The greatest challenge is guaranteeing long-term employment. "The reinsertion programme has had serious shortcomings. As paramilitaries leave the programme without jobs, the risk of relapse into criminal activities increases," says a recent report from the International Crisis Group.

It estimates that at least 3,000 people, including former combatants, have joined new illegal armed groups in recent years. Criminal groups are reportedly offering former combatants up to 700,000 pesos a month ($360), about double the monthly minimum wage.

Back at Hacienda Napoles, tractors rake the fertile soil in preparation for the rows of chilli peppers that will be harvested throughout the year. Many futures depend on this ambitious project.

Mr Pearl says: "Our ultimate aim is to make people feel it was worth leaving behind their arms and that communities can live in peace."