Globalization, War Economy And Perpetual Conflict In Colombia, What Role For International Aid?

GLOBALISATION, WAR ECONOMY AND PERPETUAL CONFLICT IN COLOMBIA: WHAT ROLE FOR INTERNATIONAL AID?





By David Huey
Daviddhuey@gmail.com








MSc Political Economy of Violence, Conflict and Development






This dissertation is submitted in partial fulfilment for the degree of MSc in Political Economy of Violence, Conflict and Development of the School of Oriental andAfrican Studies (University of London)






14 September, 2001
Author’s note: The opinions and analysis outlined in this paper are the author’s alone and do not necessarily reflect the policy of Oxfam GB towards the situation in Colombia.
 

Word count: 10,878










ABSTRACT


This dissertation investigates the extent to which the conflict in Colombia is being fuelledand perpetuated by the creation of a globalised war economy. I begin with a review of the contemporary debate between economic and sociological explanations of conflict and conclude that the crisis in Colombia can only be fully understood by taking into account its unique social and historical context. I explain how a legacy of State weakness and political exclusion has led to the emergence andconsolidation of armed elites who systematically violate human rights (including the violent displacement of rural communities) in order to gain control over key economic resources. I argue that this process has been exacerbated by economic liberalisation, which is providing armed actors with new opportunities to capitalise on violent and coercive forms of accumulation. The impact of multinationalinvestment and the international drug trade on the development of Colombia’s war economy are explored in depth. The dissertation concludes with an analysis of how international donors can either accentuate or ameliorate the conflict through the strategic use of aid. US support for Plan Colombia and the War on Drugs is compared with the more socio-economic approach of the EU. In particular, I examinehow these different approaches to conflict resolution could impact on the balance of power between armed elites and civil society in Colombia.










ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS


I would like to extend special thanks to Oxfam GB for helping to fund my research in Colombia and for facilitating many of the interviews cited in this dissertation. Particular thanks go to the Oxfam office inBogotá for hosting me on my visit, and to Constantino Casasbuenas, Policy Advisor for Latin America, for his constant advice and support throughout. Finally, I would also like to thank all the people that I interviewed in Colombia for taking the time to share their experience, expertise and work with me.

TABLE OF CONTENTS










1. Introduction 4






2. Theorticalantecedents: the debate between greed and grievance as motivators of contemporary civil conflicts 5


2.1. The incursion of neo-classical economics and rational choice 5

2.2. The political economy insurgency: bringing the social back in 6

2.3. The advantages of a contextually specific war economy approach 7


3. Exclusion and political violence: lessons from Colombian history10

3.1. Oligarchy and the weakness of the State 10

3.2. La Violencia and the emergence of armed elites 11


4. The development of a war economy 14

4.1. Narcotrafficking and the new pragmatism of the guerrilla 14

4.2. War economy at the macro level: structural adjustment, economic liberalisation and authoritarian political economies 16


5. The internationalresponse: promoting economies of war or peace? 21

5.1. Plan Colombia: a plan for war 21

5.2. Alternative strategies: building peace economies from war economies 24


6. Bibliography 30





Introduction


The civil war in Colombia is arguably the world’s most durable and intractable internal conflict. Whilst other Latin American revolutions have been born, reached their...