Colombia was one of the three countries that emerged from the collapse
of Gran Colombia in 1830 (the others being Ecuador and Venezuela).
A 40-year insurgent campaign to overthrow the Colombian Government
escalated during the 1990s, undergirded in part by funds from the
drug trade. Although the violence is deadly and large swaths of the
countryside are under guerrilla influence, the movement lacks the
military strength or popular support necessary to overthrow the government.
An anti-insurgent army of paramilitaries has grown to be several thousand
strong in recent years, challenging the insurgents for control of
territory and illicit industries such as the drug trade and the government's
ability to exert its dominion over rural areas. While Bogota continues
to try to negotiate a settlement, neighboring countries worry about
the violence spilling over their borders.
Colombia is slightly less than three times the size of Montana. The
climate is tropical along the coast and eastern plains and cooler
in the highlands. |
