From the “War of Colors” to the Declaration as a Cultural Property: Heritage in the Construction of the Social Capital of Victims from El Catatumbo, Colombia (2021-2024)

Abstract

This work is part of a research on the progress made on comprehensive reparation and its implications in the land-use planning of eight Colombian departments, where more than 50% of the population is victim of the conflict. One of these departments is Norte de Santander, which encompasses eight municipalities in such condition. There are three declared historic centers in this department, two of them located in El Catatumbo (La Playa de Belén y El Carmen), which allow us to analyze the relation between the concepts of heritage promoted by the Special Management and Protection Plans, and reparation according to its definition on Law 1448 of 2011. The guiding questions of this study were the following: What is the relation between memory and heritage? How does resilience contribute to reparation? When does idyllic worth materialize in the construction of the social fabric? And where can heritage be articulated with victims? The research method was mixed and combined a view from above (normative) and from below (the communities), in order to demonstrate the territories weaknesses affected by the conflict and the resilience of the communities to preserve their tangible and intangible values, just as the lack of articulation of the planning instruments and the incidence in the reparation issues.