The President’s Inbox Brewing Troubles in Colombia, With Roxanna Vigil
Sep 2, 2025
Roxanna Vigil, an International Affairs Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, discusses the alarming rise of political violence in Colombia as the country approaches a pivotal presidential election. She highlights the struggles for power among various factions, including FARC dissidents and the ELN, emphasizing their ties to drug trafficking. Vigil also examines the precarious future of demobilized FARC members and the broader implications of Colombia's instability on regional security and migration issues.
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Three Pillars Of Transitional Justice
- Colombia's transitional justice has three parts: a war crimes tribunal, a Truth Commission, and a unit to search for the disappeared.
- Former combatants who admit crimes get more lenient penalties, while others face adversarial trials with uncertain restrictions on freedom.
Structural Roots Drive Implementation Challenges
- The peace accord aims to address structural issues like inequality, rural state absence, and the drug economy driving conflict.
- Implementation has lagged due to political will and ambitious commitments that remain partially unmet.
Total Peace Encounters Bad-Faith Negotiators
- President Gustavo Petro pursued a 'total peace' strategy to negotiate with multiple armed groups beyond the FARC.
- Many groups exploited negotiations to strengthen territorial control rather than negotiate in good faith.
