Nov. 9, 2004	Press Contact: William Harms (773) 702-8356 w-harms@uchicago.edu
Center for Latin American Studies presents Civil War and Peacemaking in Colombia     Additional Contact: Contact: Patrick Eccles clas@uchicago.edu 773-702-8420   What: Colombia's long-lasting civil war has in recent years entered new stages that still need to be rigorously examined and discussed. A four-decade long armed conflict, one of the oldest in the world, it raises baffling questions for scholars of different disciplines and regions. Has the nature of the civil war changed over time following the lead of Colombias socio-economic development and political competition? How have these dynamics affected the very nature of the armed actors, including their organizational structures and strategic choices? How do these developments bode for future efforts at peace-making? All of these questions are bound to become increasingly relevant as the disarray of Colombia's party system achieves new heights, its economy grapples with increasingly hard fiscal realities and the US's drug-interdiction policy becomes more assertive, both domestically and externally. While the US aid program known as Plan Colombia is set to end next year as the country closes 40 years of unresolved internal conflict, Colombia's president Uribe is beginning to implement his own Patriot Plan calling for ambitious and long-term military objectives against "Latin America's oldest and largest guerrilla army."[1] In this way, the idea of addressing matters peacefully wavers amid harsh realities. Despite the particularities of the Colombian setting, it displays similarities with that of other countries undergoing civil war. The conference aims to bring together scholars of conflicts from around the world to identify similarities and difference that will shed new light on the questions above. Participants: Zachary Elkins, University of Illinois Andreas Feldmann, University of Chicago Jeffrey Goodwin, New York University Ian Lustick, University of Pennsylvania Luis Medina, University of Chicago Carlos Nasi Lignarolo, Universidad de los Andes, Colombia Frank Safford, Northwestern University When: Saturday, November 13, 2004 8:30 am - 5:00 pm Where: University of Chicago International House Home Room 1414 E. 59th Street This academic conference is organized by the University of Chicago Center for Latin American Studies, and co-sponsored by the International House Global Voices Program. The event is free and open to the public. Persons with disabilities who may need assistance should contact the office of programs and special events at the International House in advance at 773-753-2274.   http://www-news.uchicago.edu/releases/04/041109.colombia.shtml Last modified at 11:28 AM CST on Tuesday, November 09, 2004.
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