NEW INVESTIGATION AND EVENT

Escobar’s Former Hitman Takes the Road to ‘Total Peace’ in Medellín, Colombia 

Dear Subscriber, 

InSight Crime is pleased to announce the launch of our latest investigation, “Escobar’s Former Hitman Takes the Road to ‘Total Peace’ in Medellín, Colombia.” This will be followed on September 18 by a discussion panel, "‘Total Peace’: A Solution to Urban Conflict in Colombia?" 

In this investigation, InSight Crime explores generations of urban conflict in the city of Medellín through the eyes of gangster turned peace advocate Henry Holguín, who offers insight into what he believes is the way to break the cycle of violence: the inclusion of the city’s gangs in the government’s plans for “Total Peace” in Colombia. 

Holguín was introduced to weapons as a child by leftist guerrillas. Later, he was a hitman for the Medellín Cartel and a powerful gang leader. But then he became a peace broker, mediating between opposing armed groups to strike non-aggression pacts in Medellin’s marginalized neighborhoods. Today, the organization he helped found represents one of the most powerful gangs participating in the Total Peace talks in the city. 

And we ask the questions hanging over the current peace process: Does Total Peace offer a way to end the constant recycling of crime and conflict in Medellín? Or is it a convenient excuse for gang bosses to leverage their criminal control over the city’s underworld for their personal gain? 

We invite you to explore the full investigation, available on our website.

Watch the video explainer

Event

Join us on 18 September for a virtual event (Spanish) with a group of experts discussing the issues raised by this investigation. Panelists include Carlos Espitia, researcher for the Human Rights and Conflict Observatory at the Institute for Development and Peace Studies (Instituto de Estudios Para el Desarrollo y La Paz - Indepaz), Berenice Celeita, director of the Association for Investigation and Social Action (Asociación para la Investigación y Acción Social – Nomadesc), and Sara García, InSight Crime investigator and co-author of this investigation, with Crisis Group senior analyst Elizabeth Dickinson as moderator.

See here for more details > 

Regards, 

The InSight Crime Team 

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