Friday, October 30, 2009

The Slow Death Of Colombia's FARC Guerrilla Movement


Why Colombia's Leftist Guerrillas Are Defecting -- Time Magazine

At a ramshackle radio station nestled in former guerrilla territory, a Colombian soldier-DJ dedicates a country-and-western-style ballad to all the rebels out there having second thoughts about la revoluciĆ³n. In the song, a former guerrilla touts the benefits of disarming. "My life has changed," he declares. "Now I've got a girlfriend. I'm with my family. I give thanks to God."

The message-laden music is part of an army propaganda blitz that includes radio spots, billboards and leaflets dropped by helicopter. Guerrillas of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia — the nation's largest rebel group, known as the FARC — are told that by turning themselves in, their sins will be forgiven and they can start anew. The campaign is one of the pillars of a broader U.S.-backed military offensive that has driven the FARC out of the most important areas of Colombia and cut the size of the rebel army in half.

Read more ....

My Comment:
In the end, only the stupid or the most fanatical will be left within FARC. After decades of war and attrition, it appears that FARC is a few steps away from degenerating into disorganized groups of narco growers and suppliers .... a shell of its former self.

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