The success factors to defeat insurgency in the Philippines and its applicability in the Colombian context

Abstract

The Colombian government has been coping with insurgent groups for almost fifty years. The evolution of the Colombian internal conflict reflects the states ongoing desire to defeat the insurgency militarily to bring the situation back to peace. The states purpose in doing so is to boost the country to become a more robust and stable nation. Although many peace processes have been undertaken (including one in October 2012 sponsored by the international community in Oslo), the efforts have been unsuccessful. Terrorist groups, especially the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and the National Liberation Army (ELN), remain unwilling to cooperate and have strengthened their capabilities, armaments and human resources, and increased their capacity and span of control. The study and comparison of similar cases for conflict resolution and peace achievement is a viable option to gain insight into and develop new solutions to cope with the Colombian internal conflict. The Philippines successful peace process in the province of Bohol deserves special consideration for parallel application to address the Colombian conflict. The peace process in Bohol particularly stands out because it is a unique instance of turning around an insurgency, and it is currently being used as a model to counter other insurgent groups in the Philippines. Moreover, it could be applied to Colombia, given the similarity of the two states and the nature of their internal conflicts. This thesis will examine the success factors used in the province of Bohol to end the conflict and its applicability to the Colombian internal conflict.