Colombia Timeline

Colombian History Timeline

By the 1970s, Colombia was the third-largest recipient of military aid from the US in Latin America. This exchange is indicative of the true objective of American aid to Colombia; it was about preserving pro-US government rather than countering narcotics.

Side note: Pro-US is important for Cold War!

A telegram was sent from the Colombian embassy to the Department of State in 1976 that was particularly revealing of America's real priorities in the country. US Ambassador to Colombia Viron Vaky reported that the Colombian minister of defense felt that the US was not devoting enough resources towards proposed narcotics interdiction efforts. Reagan’s “war on drugs” was not only portrayed as a health issue but a moral one, where the traditional values of family, community, and faith in Western society were being jeopardized and the “very foundations of civilization” were at stake.

1989

USA began to supply the Colombian government with military equipment to help rid Colombia of drug dealers

Pre-Cold War Cont.

1964-1971

1948-1957

1899-1902: The War of the Thousand Days

1903: Panama seceded from Colombia with US backing and allows US control over the land now known as the Panama Central zone.

1922: US paid Colombia $25 million for the loss of Panama

1939-1945: Colombia helped the US keep the Panama canal open during the war

1964-1971 - Left-wing guerrilla groups emerge, including the Leftist National Liberation Army (ELN), the Maoist People's Liberation Army (EPL), the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc) and M-19.

"La Violencia": Civil war between the Liberals and Conservatives kills some 250,000-300,000 people before being ended when the two parties form the National Front coalition.

Plan Colombia was the name of a United States foreign aid, military and diplomatic initiative aimed at combating Colombian drug cartels and left-wing insurgent groups in Colombia. The official objectives of Plan Colombia were to end the Colombian armed conflict by increasing funding and training of Colombian military and para-military forces and creating an anti-cocaine strategy to eradicate coca cultivation, though critics claim this largely served as a cover to increase U.S. military presence and protect U.S. corporate interests in the region.

After Len Bias's death in 1986, the use of cocaine and crack cocaine dropped dramatically. The USA formed many different groups to stop drug abuse and poured millions of dollars into the topic. Within the next 5-10 years, many popular drug lords were arrested because of the stricter policies implemented by Colombia with help from the United States.

Pre-Cold War

1819: Columbia gains independence from Spain and Simon Bolivar becomes the first Colombian president.

1830: Ecuador and Venezuela become totally independent from Gran Colombia

1853: Colombia adopts a constitution that abolished slavery

The ELN sought to take the current government to put a more representative one in its place. They began taking over villages and kidnapping politicians and government officials.

As a result of "La Violencia", the Liberals did not present a candidate for the 1949 election. Laureano Gómez went into office in 1950.