Colombia
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Cesar is a musician & peace activist. His guitar is made from a gun, a modern example of turning swords into ploughshares
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Fredy Gallego (right) works with our partner to spread messages of peace amongst the young people of Bogota.
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Maria’s family in Colombia now get a fair price for their coffee, so she can dream of going to college and becoming a policewoman.
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In Colombia we are helping farmers to improve their harvests and make a decent and stable price for their coffee.
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Bella helps earn money for her family by working at a business for the visually impaired.
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Alexander Sanchez Valenva and Cesar Lopez promote peace through music.
Colombia has been ravaged by nearly fifty years of armed conflict involving the army, leftist guerrillas and right wing paramilitary groups.
The lucrative drugs trade, which provides huge profits for paramilitary and guerrilla groups, perpetuates the conflict. But poverty and inequality are what cause the conflict.
Many thousands of Colombians have been killed and over four million people have been forced to flee their homes in search of safety. On top of this trauma, most people end up pushed into long term poverty, living in unsafe dwellings in shanty towns on the outskirts of cities. Today Colombia has one of the highest numbers of displaced people in the world, second only to Sudan.
The Catholic Church plays a key role in Colombia as an advocate for peace and human rights and in the resettlement of uprooted communities. CAFOD’s programme focuses on peace-building, sustainable livelihoods and work on HIV and AIDS.
Read more about our work in Colombia and make a stand for peace on our Pass it on website>>
