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Date: November 25, 2024 Mon
Time: 8:11 pm
Time: 8:11 pm
Results for drug markets (colombia)
1 results foundAuthor: Beltran, Isaac De Leon Title: Urban drug markets and zones of impunity in Colombia: The assumptions and the facts behind the retail drug trade and the responses to it Summary: On 1 April 2013, after visiting the Bronx, one of Bogota's main enclaves of crime and drug dealing, President Juan Manuel Santos announced that the authorities would be dismantling 24 drug outlets in 20 cities around the country in the space of 60 days. "War unleashed against Colombia's 'ollas' (drug dens)" was the headline in one of the country's leading newspapers. One year later, the national news channels broadcast images of bulldozers literally demolishing the buildings where the drug dens functioned, in joint operations by the police and the public prosecutor's office. The measure looked like a publicity coup in the midst of the election contest, but several organisations and analysts warned that it would do nothing to solve a problem that has multiple causes. Those narratives and explanations that place the local drug market alongside violence and crime - especially in urban settings - have gained strength in the last decade. This is despite the fact that drug trafficking in cities and the influence of criminal organisations in the local urban economy is nothing new. On the contrary, although the major trafficking networks have given priority to exporting the drugs produced in the country, they have also shown interest in the local market, which has allowed them to gain control of urban territory. The retail drug trade has been identified by the authorities as a strategic priority, under the hypothesis that it is one of the main triggers of violence and crime, as well as a response by the criminal organisations to their loss of influence in global markets. How valid is this argument? The interaction of local drug markets with violence and crime is complex and goes in more than one direction. Furthermore, at least in the case of Colombia's cities, it is very difficult to separate it off from other types of criminal economies. The aim of this briefing is to put to the test the starting points and assumptions underlying the definition of this 'new' threat, and provide an overview of local drug markets and their relationship with violence and crime in Colombia's cities. It will therefore analyse recent developments in criminal activity, how the criminal organisations have adapted in response to interventions by the state, and the forces involved in shaping the local drug market. In particular, it will analyse the retail drug trade in two of Colombia's cities, Cali and Barranquilla, in order to connect this illegal market to the presence of criminal organisations and high-impact crimes. These two cases will provide important evidence regarding the spatial dynamics of the retail drug trade and its implications for urban security. Finally, the main findings will be contrasted with government proposals to tackle the problem, offering some lessons learned and recommendations. Details: Amsterdam: Transnational Institute (TNI), 2014. 16p. Source: Internet Resource: Briefing Series on Drug Markets and Violence Nr 2: Accessed February 27, 2015 at: http://www.tni.org/sites/www.tni.org/files/download/dmv2.pdf Year: 2014 Country: Colombia URL: http://www.tni.org/sites/www.tni.org/files/download/dmv2.pdf Shelf Number: 134725 Keywords: Drug Addiction and CrimeDrug Markets (Colombia)Drug Related ViolenceDrug TraffickingOrganized Crime |