Agrarian reform: Peace with the farc, A Commitment Once Again Postponed

Abstract

The peace agreement between the Colombian Government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (farc) postponed agrarian reform for the third time in eighty years (1936, 1960-1968, 2016). In the 2016 accord, the parties agreed to a laconic process of formalization of private property by assigning property titles to those who already possess land. Restitution and reparations to those deprived of their lands during the 25 years of war were also approved, but the redistribution of property was deferred once again. This issue is especially important, given that Colombia’s Gini coefficient for land distribution is 0.8 %, one of the most unequal in the world. Bearing this in mind, the article discusses the fact that in Colombia, land issues continue to be characterized by a permanent process of originary accumulation, with large estates as the dominant form, and argues that the peace agreement is merely a way of preparing the Colombian agrarian world for full-fledged capitalism, creating property rights necessary for agro-industry and transforming peasants into a work force available for production now that they have been liberated from war.