Negotiating peace with the National Liberation Army (Ejército de Liberación Nacional – ELN) lay at the heart of Colombian President Gustavo Petro’s election campaign and his Total Peace (Paz Total) policy. It was always going to be a herculean task. Failure now seems inevitable.
Petro sat down with an ELN stronger than ever before in its history and with a huge strategic advantage: Venezuela and the support of the Maduro regime. What rebel group has ever signed a political deal while it is growing in strength and the military option allowed for further expansion?
This investigation looks at the growth of the ELN in Venezuela and how this has allowed the rebel group to project itself into Colombia. It also examines how the ELN and the Maduro regime are now in a symbiotic relationship, each dependent on the other – and each stronger for it.
Investigation Chapters
Border Wars: The ELN and the Takeover of Catatumbo
The ELN offensive was also the last straw for the peace process with the government of President Gustavo Petro. Following the Catatumbo incident, the Colombian…
Cocaine Corridor: Drugs Drive ELN’s Venezuela Expansion
The ELN has now reportedly expanded to operating its own cocaine laboratories and overseeing transport of the drug across borders. The group’s seizure of Colombia’s…
Mirror of Control: How the ELN Dominates Both Arauca and Apure
It took decades for the ELN to achieve hegemony in Arauca. But more recently, it has solidified a similar level of social control on the…
Guerrilla Governance: The ELN’s Social Control in Táchira
The ELN’s impunity in Táchira is the result of years of complicity and cooperation with local security forces and pro-government leaders. In many areas, the…
The Future of the ELN
The future of the National Liberation Army (Ejército de Liberación Nacional – ELN) is now intimately connected to Venezuela. As long as the Venezuelan government…
Credits:
Written by: Venezuela Investigative Unit, Jeremy McDermott, Mike LaSusa
Edited by: Mike LaSusa, Jeremy McDermott, Creusa Muñoz
Fact-checking: Venezuela Investigative Unit
Layout and design: María Isabel Gaviria, Juan José Restrepo, Isabella Soto
Graphics: María Isabel Gaviria, Juan José Restrepo, Isabella Soto, Christopher Newton
