Red Hot Burning Peace

Colombian Army blocks the road, uproots fruit trees, and poisons streams in an effort to displace communities. An Army slogan is "Yes, there are Heroes in Colombia"—is poisoning wells ever heroic?

A judge rules seven years later on a case of the Colombian State against trade unionists. In the middle of an election race, President Santos will have to publicly apologize for crimes his main rival committed.

The community of El Tamarindo was formed by internally displaced families on empty, untitled land in Colombia. With the expansion of the Barranquilla Free Trade Zone, the community is being forcefully displaced again.

On Colombia's Pacific coast, Buenaventura has been host to the worst violence seen in Colombia for years, as the interests of developers, local people, and paramilitary groups collide.

While a subsection of Colombian society enjoys access to education, access to jobs, and racial privilege, the teenaged sons of the majority of the population put their lives on the line to protect what they themselves do not enjoy.

One of the emblemetic organizations resisting violence in Colombia provides insight into deeper truths about the political economy of conflict in the country.

As we approach the end of the year, Red Hot Burning Peace takes the opportunity to report on some overlooked stories from the last couple of months and tie up some loose ends, covering President Santos' apology to the comunidad de Paz de San Jose de Apartado, Drummond's fine, Petro's ongoing battle for reinstatement, and the current FARC ceasefire.

Bogotá has been rocked by indignados protesting the past two weeks due to a possibly unconstitutional removal of the city's Mayor Gustavo Petro. The Procurador Alejandro Ordoñez was behind the move, banning him from holding public office for 15 years. But the institutional force behind Ordoñez, and the consequences the removal will have in the new year, remain to be seen.

The modification and certification of seeds has put Colombian campesinos up against giant multinationals, creeping international "protection" laws, the U.S. Free Trade Agreement, and their own government. On December 3, Colombian farmers returned to the streets.

The Colombian media is in the midst of a nostalgia fest, sparked by the twentieth anniversary of Pablo Escobar's death. The jefe of the Medellín Cartel, estimated fifteenth richest man in the world, some time Liberal party congressman, some time grave robber, Escobar has been the subject of a number of best selling books in both Colombia and the United States.

The Colombian media is in the midst of a nostalgia fest, sparked by the twentieth anniversary of Pablo Escobar's death. The jefe of the Medellín Cartel, estimated fifteenth richest man in the world, some time Liberal party congressman, some time grave robber, Escobar has been the subject of a number of best selling books in both Colombia and the United States.

The Atlantic Concession Railway links the coal mines of Cesar to the ports of Santa Marta. The traditional ways of life and artisenal industries of communities at both ends of the track have been destroyed by environmental damage, leading to their forced displacement.