NCJ Number
209592
Journal
Journal of Drug Issues Volume: 35 Issue: 1 Dated: Winter 2005 Pages: 83-105
Date Published
2005
Length
23 pages
Annotation
This paper analyzes the role played by drugs in opening up the Columbian system to terrorism.
Abstract
The author begins with a review of the varied definitions of terror and then employs a historical perspective to analyze how the drug trade resulted in Columbia becoming vulnerable to terrorism. The connections between organized crime and terrorism are examined as the analysis ponders the intersection of socio-political grievances and economics that could arguably lead to the demise of political ideology within terrorist networks. The formation of the Columbian political and social structure through the nineteenth and 20th centuries are reviewed, illustrating how the Columbian political system has historically been geared toward a narrow realm of bipartisan elite interests. The emergence of alternative political movements in Columbia, such as the guerrillas, is considered as the author moves into a discussion of how movements like the guerrillas would change with the emergence of the drug factor. Previous to the influx of large-scale drug operations in Columbia, the guerrillas posed no real threat to the establishment. This changed with the injection of drug money into the guerrilla movement, illustrating the convergence of terrorism and organized crime. The result was the contamination of the methods and goals of the terrorist protagonists and the corruption of the Columbian government. Notes, references