By Aura Isabel Olano
The public order situation in Cauca is not serious, it is very serious, but the national and departmental governments seem to care little about the terrible violence suffered by populations in the north, south, east and west of this long-suffering Colombian region, taken from years ago by guerrillas of all stripes, dedicated to drug trafficking, illegal mining, extortion, looting, murder.
The residents are in the middle of the clashes between the so-called FARC dissidents with the ELN and other criminal groups that dispute the territories to continue profiting from coca, with its entire “productive” chain; of marijuana, for whose greenhouses they steal electricity, and of the poppy, the plant from which opium is produced. These crops for illicit use have long made Cauca a paradise for criminals.
Indigenous communities agreed with these criminal groups, who were allowed to enter their territories, but not the Army (which they kicked out in 2012 from Cerro de Berlin, in Toribío) or the Police, but over time they Christ turned his back on them, because having relations with bandits is very expensive. How many indigenous leaders have been murdered? How many farmers have had to flee from bullets and murderous tattoos? How many children have they forced to join the bandit ranks? How many children and adolescents have died in combat with the Army, because the bandits put them at the forefront? They have used this miserable tactic for many years, since Cauca has been a sanctuary for subversion. So much so, that it was in Santo Domingo, rural area of Toribío, where the M-19 handed over their weapons.
What has happened these days in Algeria is terrifying; brave soldiers who, in defense of the population, faced the criminal structure Carlos Patiño, of the Central General Staff (EMC), commanded by alias ‘Dumar’ or ‘Chito’, four of them were vilely murdered and their bodies desecrated, which constitutes the most appalling violation of International Humanitarian Law. Despite this monstrosity, there is no major reaction, but rather cliché phrases from the Petro Government. Could it be that the lives of the soldiers, who sacrifice them in defense of citizens and institutions, matter little?
It hurts a lot to listen to the audios of the badly injured soldiers begging for support from their superiors, after three hours of combat in Algeria. Hearing them shout: “They let us die,” has shocked the country. Help arrived late, without being able to remove the bodies of the murdered soldiers, corpses that were mocked by despicable beings, with whom the Government intends to make “Total Peace.”
Needless to say, the governor of Cauca, Octavio Guzmán, about whom little is known, seems to be a person without character, without leadership, who, in the face of the terrible situation that Cauca is experiencing in all its cardinal points, does not speak out, does not demand from the Central government will be more forceful against criminal groups, a strategy that will restore peace to this martyred department. The only thing that transcends this regional leader is that he is allowing himself to be “governed” by certain contractors who have his whim in this administration, even some entrenched from previous governments.
What has Mr. Guzmán done against illegal mining? What program has he designed to combat illicit crops? He will say that this corresponds only to the national government, which also does nothing to combat the drug trafficking guerrillas. If the governor of Cauca does not defend his department, the people who suffer permanent harassment and violence from those who have taken over the region, why did he get elected if he is not capable of governing? Of course, it is the record of his predecessor, Elías Larrahondo, another mediocre ruler, who all he seeks is to continue with power in someone else’s body, to jump, it seems, to the House of Representatives. They are the governments of tricks, that’s what they are experts for.
Meanwhile, without real rulers, without national spokesperson, Cauca struggles in the midst of violence, abandonment and corruption, because even the Departmental Comptroller’s Office is conspicuous by its absence.
It cannot be denied that there is fear in Cauca, that they feel orphaned, hence many companies have decided to leave Popayán and other places in the department, not only large companies, but also small ones, with worrying consequences for the economy, its growth. and employment. The ideologized indigenous communities are also responsible for this exodus, who take the Panamericana when they feel like it, they only care about their own interests, as if they were not part of the department. That must change.