Colombia's displaced face ample hurdles, even death, to recover stolen land

Colombia's displaced face ample hurdles, even death, to recover stolen land
18 Jun 2010 08:54:00 GMT
Written by: Anastasia Moloney

BOGOTA (AlertNet) - Seventeen years ago, an armed gang chased the Moreno family off their small farm in northwest Colombia at gunpoint.

Now again, death is a real risk for people campaigning to return stolen land to the millions of Colombians displaced by illegal armed groups.

In the last 30 years, Colombia's armed groups, mostly right-wing paramilitaries, have snatched an estimated 4 to 6 million hectares of land to use as drug-smuggling corridors, or to pass on to palm oil producers, logging or mining companies for a fee or a cut of the business. Corrupt notaries falsified deeds, or villagers were forced to sign away title deeds and communal land titles, sometimes at gunpoint, or to sell their land at prices well below market value.

More:
http://www.alertnet.org/db/an_art/59877/2010/05/18-085443-1.htm