Peace mobilization in Colombia: 1978-2002 Carlos Fernández, Mauricio García Durán and Fernando Sarmiento (2004) In 1997, ten million people voted for peace as part of the ‘Citizen’s Mandate for Peace’, just one of the huge variety of initiatives that have taken place in Colombia. The authors chart the historical phases of peace initiatives and social mobilization: from its emergence in defence of human rights; to support for the first peace processes; to the mass mobilizations of the late 1990s; and finally to the crisis of the national level movement following the collapse of President Pastrana’s peace talks with the FARC. The article illustrates the limitations, contradictions and potential of the peace movement and concludes that despite needing to mature socially and politically, its wealth of past experience could be the foundations for a lasting peace and reconciliation process.
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