With
a low economy and not enough jobs to support the citizens,a large
part of Colombia's population turned to agriculture. The farmers
would grow things like corn, rice, potatoes, and other
vegetables.(Guardian) They would soon find out that even this would
turn out to either make them little money or even cause them to loose
some.
Coca plants
have been cultivated on the slopes of the Andes since before the
Incas. When chewed, its leaves act as a mild stimulant and help
overcome hunger, thirst and fatigue.(Guardian) As the world's drug
trade grew, Coca's value increased. This meant that Columbia's ideal,
humid and tropical, climate would be great for production of large
amounts of Coca. Farmers would now turn to growing Coca plants, which
they knew was a safe and very profitable business. Peasant farmers
now found themselves making more money then they could have imagined
to make from simple crops. The wealthy were now loosing their power
due to the increase of importance of the farmers who were now the
ones growing what would turn out to be the most profitable crop of
Colombia. The growth of the drug trade in Colombia is often discussed
and argued over by the government, but they all forget that this is
not a religious, political, or moral issue, but a public issue all
kept going by the low employment level.( Guardian)
The growth
of Coca plans continued to grow and law enforcement tried to stop it.
For many years, Colombia lacked a political leader who would put an
end to this. With no central authority, police force was weakened and
divided. This division made it harder to organize and coordinate the
officers, and sometimes even caused corruption. Weak enforcement lead
to growth in power of the cartels.
Cartels
trade their drugs around the world, smuggling them in planes, boats,
cars, and even go as far as making their own submarines. With this
much power and wealth, cartels became dangerous people. The drug war
increased the killing and human suffering in Colombia. The cartels
provoke military responses by murdering civilians and other cartels,
which only lead to more terrorist campaigns of their own. Groups such
as Farc, and a smaller rebel group called the ELN, are trafficking
cocaine. Although fought against, Farc has made a military comeback,
ambushing troops and kidnapping and killing a provincial governor. By
starting to fight back, organized crime tends to weaken the moral of
people, further weakening the nation.(KPBS)
Poor
farmers, stuck with the possibility of not having a job, turned to
farming of Coca plants. Colombia's ideal weather proved to be perfect
for its growth. Cartels now used these farmers to increase their
wealth and sales of cocaine. A weak law enforcement could not stop
these cartels, and over years they gained power, wealth, and respect
amongst the drug world. Governments try to stop this global Colombian
drug trade, but fail to do so, blaming political or moral issues,
instead of the social and economic issues the people faced, which
started the growth of Coca in the first place.
