A recent surge in conflict violence in the Catatumbo region of northeast Colombia is threatening to spill over into surrounding departments, with the risk to former FARC members in the peace process considerably higher since the start of the year.
On 10 March, the National Ombudsman’s Office issued an alert over a possible dangerous situation around the formal transitional zone Tierra Grata, one of 24 such spaces created in the 2016 peace agreement, in the department of Cesar, as well as neighbouring municipalities La Paz, Manaure Balcón del Cesar and San Diego. The transitional zones, known as ETCRs, were established to provide accommodation, training and security for former guerrillas after they entered the peace process.
According to the Ombudsman, the level of threat has significantly escalated due to the crisis that erupted in Catatumbo in mid-January. Fighting between the National Liberation Army (ELN) guerrillas and a faction of the Estado Mayor Central (EMC) armed group known as the EMBF killed around 80 people and forcibly displaced over 40,000 from their homes. Among the dead were six former FARC members based at the ETCR El Negro Eliécer Gaitán de Caño Indio.
Authorities warn that, since the Catatumbo crisis, the region of Cesar where Tierra Grata is located has grown in strategic importance as a zone of refuge and transit for armed combatants, which could bring them into direct contact with those participating in the peace process. This has increased the risk to former guerrillas of homicides, displacement, forced disappearances, stigmatisation, abduction and extorsion. Concerns around stigmatisation have grown after perpetators of the Catatumbo killings sought to legitimise the violence by claiming victims belonged to active armed groups, though no proof was provided.
Justice for Colombia delegations, formed of British and Irish politicians and trade unionists, have twice visited Tierra Grata to learn about the experiences of former guerrillas there and the important efforts they are making to build peace. Tierra Grata has one of the most advanced housing programmes among the ETCRs, as well as ecotourism, textiles and agricultural projects to provide livelihoods for residents. The community have also founded a museum on the armed conflict.
Most recently, British and Irish trade unions have contributed to a JFC project to fund a school bus for secondary school-aged children at Tierra Grata. Previously, the poor quality of roads and the distances involved had made it virtually impossible to attend classes, with the purchase of the bus ensuring they will be able to get the education they need.
Although the majority of former FARC members remain involved in the peace process, they face extremely high levels of violence, with over 440 killed – of a total of 13,600 accredited former guerrillas – since the peace agreement was signed in November 2016. The violence in Catatumbo has seen a sharp rise in cases since the start of 2025, with ongoing instability stoking fears that, after a couple of years of decline in cases, the violence could rise further.