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1 month ago
17
Source: AFP
With cocaine accumulation astatine an all-time high, Colombia's authorities is investigating a pacific attack to its narcotics problem: paying farmers to uproot crops of coca, the drug's main ingredient.
Among the beneficiaries are Alirio Caicedo and his lad Nicolas, who a decennary agone planted an expanse of coca arsenic they staked their aboriginal connected the continued patronage of transgression gangs.
Today, they are uprooting the crops and hoping for the best.
The Caicedos and immoderate 4,000 different Colombian families person entered into a pact with the authorities to regenerate their coca with alternate crops specified arsenic cocoa and coffee.
It is portion of a $14.4 cardinal task to trim proviso of a merchandise blamed for untold misery successful a state wherever equipped groups unit agrarian communities to turn coca and raze forests for its cultivation.
The task seeks to eradicate coca accumulation connected 45,000 hectares successful 3 of Colombia's astir conflict-riddled regions, including the southwestern Micay Canyon wherever the Caicedos ply their commercialized successful the Argelia municipality.
Source: AFP
For farmers it is simply a risk.
They cannot beryllium definite that their caller plantations -- java successful the Caicedos' lawsuit -- volition succeed, oregon that guerrillas and different groups whose income beryllium connected cocaine income volition permission them successful peace.
"When 1 is planting a coca plant, determination is anticipation that successful time... determination volition beryllium a harvest and determination volition beryllium immoderate income," Nicolas Caicedo, 44, told AFP portion helium and his dad, 77, shoveled and tugged astatine the remaining coca shrubs connected their property.
"Uprooting the plants means that... determination volition beryllium nary much harvests -— successful different words, nary much money," from coca astatine least.
With coca, the Caicedos said they were guaranteed an income of astir $800 per month.
Source: AFP
They person received an archetypal outgo of astir $300 nether the task to turn coffee, with much to come.
But different farmer, who spoke to AFP connected information of anonymity, said helium doubted the task could enactment successful areas specified arsenic Argelia wherever amerciable groups outnumber the authorities successful presumption of fighters and guns.
"No equipped radical that lives disconnected (coca) is going to privation a husbandman to halt increasing coca and power to coffee," helium said.
'Naive'
Source: AFP
Gustavo Petro, Colombia's first-ever leftist president, took bureau successful 2022 with the extremity of extricating his state from the US-led "war connected drugs" blamed for double-victimization of agrarian Colombians already surviving nether the yoke of convulsive transgression groups.
On his watch, cocaine accumulation successful Colombia -- the world's biggest exporter of the cause -- reached grounds levels arsenic request continues to turn successful Europe and the United States -- the main consumer.
Several erstwhile attempts to get Colombian coca producers to alteration crops person failed arsenic equipped groups caused havoc and authorities payments and different assistance yet dried up.
For Gloria Miranda, caput of Colombia's amerciable harvest substitution program, told AFP would beryllium naive to deliberation this caller programme volition extremity cause trafficking "as agelong arsenic determination is simply a marketplace of 20 cardinal consumers and it (cocaine) remains illegal."
In his stated quest for "total peace," Petro has sought to negociate with a assortment of equipped groups, meaning less subject operations and the abandonment of forced coca eradication.
But talks person mostly breached down, and the accomplishment of Donald Trump successful the White House successful January has ramped up unit connected Bogota.
The Trump medication is reviewing Colombia's certification arsenic an state successful the combat against drugs -- a determination that could restrict millions of dollars successful subject aid.
With precocious stakes for its harvest replacement gamble, observers fearfulness the authorities whitethorn beryllium taken vantage of.
Some farmers whitethorn "try to deceive" by taking the wealth portion continuing to turn coca, Argelia authorities caput Pablo Daza told AFP.
Source: AFP
Without capable monitoring, "the chances are rather precocious that we are wasting money," added Emilio Archila, who oversaw a similar, failed, task nether erstwhile President Ivan Duque.
Miranda assures determination volition beryllium "meticulous" outer monitoring, and anyone recovered not to beryllium complying volition beryllium expelled from the program.
Used not lone for cocaine, the coca leafage is besides chewed arsenic a stimulant successful Andean countries oregon brewed into a beverage thought to combat altitude sickness.
Colombia's appeals for the leafage to beryllium removed from a UN database of harmful narcotics truthful it can beryllium commercialized successful alternate products specified arsenic fertilizers oregon beverages, person truthful acold fallen connected deaf ears.
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Source: AFP
