Understanding the seven-decade-long Colombian conflict is not easy. It is, in fact, a paradox. On the one hand, this country is one of the most stable democracies in the region, and despite many deficiencies, it has allowed elections and power transitions. On the other hand, Colombia has been for decades one of the countries with the highest rates of conflict and violence in the region. How can we understand this paradox? Colombia has had peace agreements with various armed groups, the most recent with the FARC (2016), but despite these efforts, as well as a new constitution (1991) that emerged from one of these efforts to create consensus and peace, neither has been achieved. How are the paradoxical situation and these failed efforts related to the neoliberal model, included in the new constitution, that has ruled the formal economy in Colombia for decades? And how are they related to the parallel illegal drug trafficking that supplies the increasing drug demand – mostly cocaine - of the international market?
Alberto Yepes addressed these and other complex questions in a talk sponsored by the Colombian Human Rights Network (CHRN) and CLAS on October 9 at Rutgers University in New Brunswick. A lawyer, Alberto has dedicated the past 35 years of his life to the defense of human rights, the last eight as a coordinator of the Human Rights Observatory and the International Humanitarian Law in the CCEEU (Coordinación Colombia – Europa - Estados Unidos). In his presentation, Yepes invited the audience to read the most recent human rights report produced by his organization El Desafío del Cambio.
Complete Report, Spanish: (228 paginas):
https://informesderechoshumanos.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/El-desafio-del-cambio-final-2025.pdf
