Marxist Insurrection Movements In Colombia

Marxism consists of Karl Marx’s economic, political and social theories that aim to eliminate class structures, brought upon by capitalism, through revolutionary movements. Marxism proposes completely eradicating capitalism by establishing a dictatorship by the proletariat that will inevitably lead to a self-governing classless society. Marxism became increasingly popular in Colombia during the twentieth century, when social inequality, foreign domination and poverty issues that Marxism sought to solve were persisting problems that a large fraction of the population endured on a daily basis. The revolutionary nature of Marxism prompted the creation of insurrectionist groups known as guerrillas in various of the countries in Latin America. Even

One of the most widely recognized trademarks of the Conservative political party in Colombia is its alliance with the Colombian Church. Marxist insurrection movements in Colombia arose in the form of guerrillas, such as the National Liberation Army(ELN), seeking to seize political power from the Conservative party in order to guarantee equality among Colombians. This enmity with the Conservative party implicitly indicated enmity with the Christian Church. However, syllogistic reasoning didn’t pertain to this situation, for many religious figures, rather than being opposed to the guerrillas, sided with them through radical religious responses that went as far as joining said guerrillas. Camilo Torres, a priest and sociology professor, resigned to his position in the Colombian Church and joined the ELN guerrillas in 1965 because he disagreed with the Church’s political position. Torres asserted that “the duty of every Christian is to be a revolutionary”, statement that embodied the ideas that would later take the shape of the liberation theology movement, making Torres a face of the

The strategies and methodological concepts that structure the Peace Laboratory have ingrained in them PDP’s goal of building peace through sustainable development. Peace Laboratories replicate the conditions of social laboratories that promote dialogue, suggest peaceful resistance mechanisms and protect the population from the armed conflict. Simultaneously, the laboratories seek to foster socio-economic equality in order to create a solution to the issues that initiated the armed conflict per se, that is, decrease the gap breaching social classes apart in order to establish a milder form of the classless society that Marxism fights for. The success of the Jesuits’ initiative has been such that the Church has replicated the Peace Laboratories in nineteen locations across the country. Liberation Theology, initially associated with armed insurrection, became fulfilled in Colombia in the form of the PDPs by demonstrating that the Church can live up to its “preferential option for the poor” while instigating peace rather than violent