In our July 5 Facebook Live session, Spanish editor Ronna Rísquez and Senior Investigator Ángela Olaya discussed the recent arrest of the FARC dissident known by the alias “Rambo,” who controlled important drug trafficking routes in southern Colombia.
Olaya began the conversation by describing Luis Eduardo Carvajal, alias “Rambo,” as one of the most important players in Colombia’s current criminal landscape, as well as during the most critical points before the 2016 demobilization of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia – FARC).
Rísquez and Olaya analyzed Rambo’s role in drug trafficking and the area in which he operated, where he maintained control of drug production, laboratories and launching points for international shipments.
Olaya interviewed the then-guerrilla in the southwestern city of Tumaco in what she explains were tense moments for the FARC while they were in the demobilization zones. The researcher affirmed that he “showed a willingness to stick with the peace process and continue with everything that entailed, including turning over their weapons, the reincorporation process and productive projects.” However, she also noted that Rambo had doubts about the eradication and substitution of coca crops.
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Another aspect that stood out was the financial strength that Rambo had as commander of one of the columns that profited most from drug trafficking, which was an attractive activity given the small amounts of money promised to demobilizing fighters under the terms of the peace agreement.
The conversation ended with a discussion of the effects Rambo’s capture could have on the peace agreement, which Olaya says is breaking down in the face of the criminalization of former FARC guerrillas closest to the drug trade.
Watch the full conversation in Spanish below: