ABSTRACT
The period 1930-1946 was one of unbroken Liberal Party rule during which the Colombian government began addressing land reform policies preserving property control by a very few, extremely rich citizens. Advances in Colombia's security arena have been sufficiently impressive that Afghanistan and Mexico have turned to the country for training expertise. The emergence of strong leadership in the capital would begin a reversal of Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) fortunes eventually motivating the insurgents' willingness to negotiate with the government. Yet unlike the case of the addict, drug money in other ways strengthened rather than depleted the FARC and other movements making the transition from political to criminal insurgency. The FARC's primary competition was the rightwing militias whose influence increased when several of the larger organizations allied to form the Autodefensas Unidas de Colombia (AUC).
