SUMMARY
The Conflict ridden history of Colombia begun shortly after the country gained independence from Spain in 1819 with the formation of two dominating political parties in the country. The Conservative party had its foundation in the landowning classes and wanted stronger centralism whereas the Liberal party strived for federalism. The fight for land and the central-periphery dimension has since then been a common thread in the context of conflicts in Colombia. Several civil wars were fought, culminating in intense fighting between numerous non-state armed groups in the period named ‘La Violencia’ (the violence) in the mid twentieth century. ‘La Violencia’ was brought to an end through a constitutionally sanctioned power sharing agreement between the conservative and liberal parties, through which the two parties were to alternate power. This arrangement, known as the ‘National Front’ undermined democracy by eliminating political competition. Frustrated by not being able to enter the political arena and inspired by the successful Cuban revolution in 1959, the left wing guerilla movements started to grow. As a response, major landowners and drug lords formed paramilitary groups for protection against the guerrillas. The left wing guerrillas fought the Government of Colombia and also the right wing paramilitary groups. Several of these groups have also been responsible for one-sided violence and other human rights violations. In November 2016, Colombia's government and the FARC guerrilla achieved a significant milestone by signing a pivotal peace agreement, formally concluding a protracted five-decade civil conflict. Nevertheless, the emergence of new armed groups, alongside dissident factions of the FARC and longstanding organizations like the ELN and the Gaitanista Army of Colombia EGC, persistently compete for territorial dominance and control over illicit economies, posing challenges to attaining an enduring peace in Colombia. Since 1964, Colombia has experienced the intrastate, non-state, and one-sided categories of organized violence, as defined by UCDP.
2025
In 2025, President Gustavo Petro’s “Total Peace” policy, which intended to reduce violence through parallel negotiations with multiple armed groups, entered its third year. The policy faced serious challenges as peace talks suffered major set backs and the Catatumbo region went into state of emergency at the beginning of the year. Talks with most actors were disrupted by repeated ceasefire violations and limited progress, resulting in the suspension of negotiations and the non-renewal of bilateral ceasefires. These setbacks also exposed internal divisions within the groups, leading to fragmentation and the formation of new armed factions. As a result, violence persisted, with five active state-based dyads: Government of Colombia – ELN, Government of Colombia – FARC-EMC, Government of Colombia – FARC-Segunda Marquetalia, Government of Colombia – EGC and Government of Colombia – EMBF. The internal fragmentation of armed groups contributed to a more dispersed and complex conflict landscape. Emerging and existing factions competed violently over control of illicit economies, trafficking routes, and strategic territories. Overall number of active dyads increased, which made 2025 the deadliest year in two decades. Active non-state dyads in 2025 included: EGC – ELN, EGC – Autodefensas Conquistadoras de la Sierra Nevada, Los Costeños – Los Pepes, EGC – ELN, FARC-EMC, EGC – La Terraza, ELN – EMBF, FARC-EMC– ELN and FARC-EMC– EMBF. Civilians, in particular social leaders, were directly targeted in these dynamics, as groups such as FARC-EMC, EGC, and ELN employed coercive measures such as selective killings and massacres to assert control. The most affected regions of the country were Arauca, Catatumbo, Cauca and the Caribbean.
The peak period
Colombia has seen constant violence since 1989 with the most violent period from early 1990s until the first half of 2000s. In the early 1990s a faction of the guerilla group EPL and the M-19 signed a peace agreement with the Government of Colombia, laid down arms and entered into politics. FARC and ELN however, were still pursuing military strategies of achieving their goals. Towards the end of the 1990s the conflict intensified and between 1999 and 2002 President Pastrana carried peace negotiations both with ELN and FARC, resulting in some peace accords but no permanent resolution of the conflict. The talks with the FARC abruptly ended when the group hijacked a commercial plane with a senator aboard. After the failed peace process, President Àlvaro Uribe came to power in 2002. He was determined to fight ‘outlaws’ and his main strategy was to defeat the guerrillas militarily. The conflict with both the FARC and the ELN intensified after President Uribe came to power.
Fighting between non-state groups arose during the early 1990s, particularly the fighting between different drug cartels, Cali Cartel – Medellín Cartel and Medellín Cartel – PEPES. Other active non-state dyads during the more violent years were related to formation of the paramilitary umbrella organization AUC, which fought the two main left wing guerilla groups FARC and ELN. The AUC – FARC dyad became active in 1997, peaked in intensity in 2002 when Uribe was elected president, and lasted until 2005, the year before the AUC demobilized. The AUC and the FARC clashed on numerous occasions, both in the context of AUC support for the government’s campaign against the guerrillas and in competition over stakes in the illegal drug industry and, consequently, control over territory. The AUC – ELN dyad was active between 1998 and 2001. ELN, being the smaller of the two main leftist guerrillas, received less of AUC's direct focus than the much larger FARC guerrilla. Clashes between AUC and ELN took place mainly in the northern parts of the country.
One-sided violence against civilians was carried out by several actors in Colombia during this time. The actor responsible for the most civilian deaths was AUC, who killed more than 5000 civilians suspected of being supporters to the left wing guerillas between 1995 and 2005. FARC was also responsible for one-sided violence between the years 1994 and 2009, killing 1400 civilians. FARC’s one-sided violence was affected by its involvement in kidnapping and the illegal drug industry. Kidnapped victims were sometimes executed during rescue operations or when attempting to escape. The involvement in the drug industry intensified the fight over territory, in which civilians often became targets. FARC justified the targeting of civilians believed to be paramilitary supporters by claiming they were to be considered active protagonists. ELN was responsible for one-sided violence between the years 1998 and 2003, killing over 300 civilians mainly in northern Colombia. They used bombs or landmines and killed people who they believed were supporting other groups or giving information to enemies. Like ELN, the Government of Colombia has also been responsible for close to 500 civilian deaths in the early 1990s. The government was accused of collaborating with paramilitary groups by committing one-sided violence in areas where paramilitaries were weak and by passively supporting paramilitaries in areas where they were strong. The targets of the government’s one-sided violence against civilians were often left-wing activists or people suspected of belonging to or supporting guerrilla groups.
Decreased violence, peace talks, and reemergence of FARC fronts
During the second half of the 2000s, violence continued but at a decreased level compared to the rather long preceding peak period. AUC declared a cease-fire in 2002 and had by 2006 demobilized its forces. FARC also weakened during President Uribe’s time in office and lost some of its top commanders. In 2010 president Juan Manuel Santos came to power and in 2012 a four year long peace process started, ending with a final agreement in the conflict between the Government of Colombia – FARC in 2016. Shortly thereafter, FARC handed in their weapons and the former fighters pledged to continue their struggle as a political movement. A UN Mission was set up to verify the implementation of the peace agreement. Groups of FARC fighters, who disagreed with the peace negotiations started to grow and President Iván Duque Márquez, who was elected in 2018, held a harder stance towards guerrillas. During Duque’s time in office the Colombia: Government was active in two state based dyads: Government of Colombia – FARC-EMC and Government of Colombia – ELN. This period also saw increased one-sided violence carried out by FARC-EMC, ELN and the Government of Colombia. Demobilized FARC fighters were targeted and especially those who had taken up roles as community leaders. In 2022, Gustavo Petro became Colombia’s first left-wing president and launched the “Total Peace” policy to negotiate simultaneously with multiple armed groups. In 2023, while some temporary ceasefires were reached—most notably with the ELN —repeated violations by groups like FARC-EMC and EGC led to setbacks, and violence against civilians persisted. In 2024 talks with most actors were disrupted by repeated ceasefire violations and limited progress, resulting in the suspension of negotiations and the non-renewal of bilateral ceasefires. These setbacks also exposed internal divisions within the groups, leading to fragmentation and the formation of new armed factions. By 2024 ELN had double its presence in 231 municipalities, this expansion related to the hybridization of its economies. By the end of 2024 the conflict had escalated between EMBF, ELN, FARC-EMC, EGC and Segunda Marquetalia over territorial control of drug corridors, adding to a lack of presence of the Government in the border with Venezuela, overview has headed to the posterior crisis in The Catatumbo area.
Pre-1989 conflicts
Several of the intra-state conflicts mentioned above between the Government of Colombia and various left wing guerrilla groups became active before 1989. The Government of Colombia – FARC and Government of Colombia – ELN became active in the mid 1960s, the Government of Colombia – M-19 in late 1970s and the Government of Colombia – EPL in the mid 1980s. Colombian troops supported South Korea in the interstate conflict against North Korea during 1951-53.
