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RUEHCV/AMEMBASSY CARACAS 8960
RUEHLP/AMEMBASSY LA PAZ MAY LIMA 5023
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RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC

UNCLAS BOGOTA 003139 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PTER PREF MARR SOCI CO
SUBJECT: UNION PENEYA:  POTENTIAL POSTER CHILD FOR URIBE'S 
"DEMOCRATIC SECURITY" POLICY 
 
REF: BOGOTA 884 
 
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Summary 
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¶1.  The voluntary return of 1,200 displaced residents to the 
small town of Union Peneya is a sign that President Uribe's 
"Democratic Security" policy is working.  The COLAR thwarted 
a series of FARC attacks on the town and residents say they 
feel safe.  GOC agencies are providing short-term relief, but 
local residents complain they need additional social and 
economic help.  Local officials pledged to do more, and the 
U.S. is putting some basic infrastructure in place. 
Unemployment remains a problem and is unlikely to be solved 
without access to formal banking services/credit, clear title 
to land, and decent roads.  End Summary. 
 
------------------------------- 
Background: Life Under the FARC 
------------------------------- 
 
¶2.  Prior to 2004, La Union Peneya in Caqueta Department was 
a FARC town.  Col. Luis Navarro, head of Civil Affairs of the 
Colombian Army (COLAR), said when the military retook Union 
Peneya in 2004 they found large caches of FARC currency, a 
sure sign of FARC control.  Heriberto Sanchez, a Union Peneya 
resident and current health coordinator for the town, 
recalled that Union Peneya's 2,000 residents were relatively 
prosperous under FARC rule due to their involvement in coca 
cultivation.  The town also supported cattle farming, dairy, 
agriculture, and about 150 small businesses.  Sanchez said 
the FARC had controlled all business, deciding who could do 
what and how much they had to pay in "taxes" to the group. 
 
¶3.  Despite its small size, Union Peneya is strategically 
significant.  About 50 kilometers east of Caqueta's capital 
Florencia, Union Peneya lies on an important "mobility 
corridor" used by the FARC to move men and equipment between 
the jungle to the south and the mountains to the north.  In 
early January 2004, the Colombian Army launched a campaign to 
retake control of the area.  Union Peneya was caught in the 
crossfire.  Residents fled to Florencia and other nearby 
towns, where they struggled to make a living until their 
return in January 2007. 
 
---------- 
The Return 
---------- 
 
¶4.  Union Peneya's citizens met frequently during their exile 
to discuss returning home.  Israel Ospina, a local community 
leader, said that before they returned residents asked the 
GOC to certify the area was safe, and received a positive 
answer.  The COLAR placed a platoon-sized outpost on a ridge 
overlooking the town and Accion Social, a government social 
services agency, approved the town for resettlement.  Ospina 
said the community also reached out to the FARC, and thought 
they had an understanding with the group that if they 
returned, then the FARC would leave them alone. 
 
¶5.  In late January 2007, 1,200 plus residents returned home 
after a three year absence (reftel).  Although they had 
discussed the possibility of returning with the government, 
and had made the decision 10 days earlier, the community only 
gave the government one day's notice of the event.  Sanchez 
said the residents thought the GOC might delay the return if 
given more notice.  Still, Accion Social's Claudia Gallego 
thinks the return reflects President Uribe's "Democratic 
Security" policy, a sentiment echoed by Col. Navarro. 
 
---------------------- 
Rebuilding a Community 
---------------------- 
 
¶6.  The GOC scrambled to assist the community following its 
return, helping with transportation and emergency supplies. 
The Colombian military (COLMIL) delivered food and other key 
goods within days.  The GOC also held a ceremony in the first 
week of February to celebrate the return, attended by 
national and local officials.  During the ceremony, the 
COLMIL offered medical and dental services, repaired clothing 
and shoes, gave haircuts, and even provided a musical band. 
The ceremony was briefly interrupted when the FARC detonated 
 
a cylinder bomb less than a kilometer outside the town.  No 
one was hurt.  Residents speculate that the national 
publicity may have tempted the FARC to try and embarrass the 
GOC -- despite their reported pledge not to attack. 
 
¶7.  The GOC continues to help Union Peneya, but residents 
complain more needs to be done.  The school and the community 
health center are both open.  But the school is in bad shape 
and there are not enough teachers.  The health center has the 
personnel it needs, but is short on equipment and supplies. 
The dental technician explained that the only treatment he 
can offer is pulling teeth. Basic infrastructure is also a 
problem.  Electricity exists but is not reliable, and few 
homes have working bathrooms.  The most immediate problem is 
that safe drinking water is non-existent.  MILGRP will spend 
USD 75,000 to 100,000 to purchase and install a water pump, 
generator and water pipes, and will employ about 25 locals in 
the project. 
 
¶8.  Department medical, health and infrastructure 
representatives traveled to Union Peneya on April 20 to meet 
with the community.  They pledged to bring in more teachers, 
repair the primary school, and improve the health center. 
The U.S is supporting GOC efforts, with MILGRP organizing a 
medical outreach program and providing medications and 
medical equipment for the health center. 
 
--------------------------------------------- 
Confidence in the Future Despite FARC Attacks 
--------------------------------------------- 
 
¶9.  In February, the FARC launched several unsuccessful 
mortar attacks on Union Peneya and attempted to mine the 
surrounding area.  There were no civilian casualties in the 
engagements and a vigorous COLAR defense killed two members 
of the FARC.  During this period, the COLAR increased its 
deployment to about 175 soldiers, including an engineering 
platoon responsible for hardening their position.  A 
25-officer police force has also been established in the 
town.  General Calderon, head of the 12th Brigade in 
Florencia, said Union Peneya is now a critical focus of his 
brigade.  This will restrict the FARC's ability to move men 
and supplies through the area. 
 
¶10.  Residents welcome the GOC commitment to provide security 
in the area.  Since mid-March, the FARC has not attempted 
additional attacks against the town.  Residents say they feel 
secure, and are committed to staying.  Sanchez said that 
while people have less money, they have something even more 
important --  the freedom to live their lives the way they 
want to.  Perhaps the best indication of resident confidence 
is the fact that the population of Union Peneya is rising. 
Gallego said the population has climbed to 1,800, 90 per cent 
of its pre-2004 level. 
 
------------------------ 
Long-term Economic Needs 
------------------------ 
 
¶11.  Only about 20 percent of Union Peneya's residents are 
working.  The majority have temporary or part-time jobs with 
the government, or work in the small shops lining the town's 
main street.  Stores sell everything from medicine to clothes 
to farming equipment.  During the week they have few 
customers.  But on the weekend, when Union Peneya hosts a 
regional market, business is brisker.  Store owners said they 
have to double the price of goods from Florencia due to high 
transportation costs and low turnover.  The owner of a 
pharmacy said his family relies more on his wife's small 
salary from working at the health clinic than on store 
revenues.  The biggest buzz at the April 20 meeting came when 
state officials announced that they would hire locals for a 
series of small infrastructure projects. 
 
¶12.  Union Peneya's economic future depends on three 
interrelated needs: investment, land titles, and roads. 
Store owners explained they have no access to credit or 
banking services, so they must pay for inventories out of 
their own pockets.  Reestablishing cattle farming, diary and 
agriculture will require access to capital.  Residents say 
the biggest obstacle to credit is the absence of titled land 
that can be used as collateral.  Only 30 of the 300 plus 
homes and 30 of the 80 small farms near Union Peneya have 
clear title.  Residents pleaded for the government to 
 
initiate an expedited land titling process.  Finally, 
residents said they needed a better road to Florencia in 
order to get products to market and bring in supplies -- only 
50 kilometers separates Florencia from Union Peneya, but the 
journey takes up to six hours. 
 
¶13.  Accion Social and the COLMIL recently established an 
interagency group (including business leaders, government 
agencies, and military and police officials) to address the 
town's long-term development and security needs. The group, 
called the "Gran Comite de Cooperacion," meets regularly and 
enjoys the support of local residents. 
Drucker