Reintegration through Local Interactions: The Colombian Peace Process from the Perspective of Rural Communities

A central element of the Colombian peace process with the FARC-EP guerrillas is the collective re­integration of former combatants in specially designated “Territorial Spaces for Training and Re­incorporation.” A survey conducted in seven rural municipalities suggests that this re­integration process has led to a significant re­duction in the perceived social dis­tance and mistrust among the local popu­lation, contributing to the reconstruction of the social fabric. However, these successes are li­mited and, given the on­going violence in marginalized regions of Colombia, are at grave risk in several cases.