Effectiveness of Counterinsurgency Efforts Employed Against FARC, ELN, Research Paper

Effectiveness of Counterinsurgency Efforts Employed Against FARC, ELN, and AUC. Colombian and Peruvian Guerilla Groups - Research Paper Example For the purpose of this analysis, the research has been conducted from a range of qualitative secondary sources which have helped to shed light on the extent to which the governments of Peru and Colombia have successfully prosecuted their respective counterinsurgency wars. Secondly, the research question centers on the overall effectiveness of how these counterinsurgency struggles have been organized, implemented, and the end result of the aforementioned practices. Success is therefore easily determined based upon answering the question regarding whether the counterinsurgency efforts have been effective in either A) encouraging the insurgents to lay down their weapons and join the political process B) have resulted in a complete and total defeat of the insurgency or C) have had little effect and the insurgency is ongoing unabated. As such the research question can be answered by examining the current tactical and/or political situation posed by each of the insurgent groups that will be discussed in this paper.The case of ELN is unique for a number of reasons. First, the ELN is one of the few guerilla movements that was fought and defeated during the tumultuous battles that were ongoing within the continent between supporters of left and right at the time. Second, the ELN was unique in that it chose to work outside the framework of politics; choosing instead to espouse the Cuban revolutionaries beliefs that â€Å"first comes action – then the party†. ... Secondly, the research question centers on the overall effectiveness of how these counterinsurgency struggles have been organized, implemented, and the end result of the aforementioned practices. Success is therefore easily determined based upon answering the question regarding whether the counterinsurgency efforts have been effective in either A) encouraging the insurgents to lay down their weapons and join the political process B) have resulted in a complete and total defeat of the insurgency or C) have had little effect and the insurgency is ongoing unabated. As such the research question can be answered by examining the current tactical and/or political situation posed by each of the insurgent groups that will be discussed in this paper. ELN - Ejercito de Liberacion Nacional The case of ELN is unique for a number of reasons. First, the ELN is one of the few guerilla movements that was fought and defeated during the tumultuous battles that were ongoing within the continent between supporters of left and right at the time. Second, the ELN was unique in that it chose to work outside the framework of politics; choosing instead to espouse the Cuban revolutionaries beliefs that â€Å"first comes action – then the party†. In this way, ELN relinquished any and all claims to legitimacy it might have claimed with respect to the political process. Further, by distancing themselves from politics in such a manner, they effectively cut themselves off from all support and aid they might have received within their own country; instead, they were forced to rely on resupply and technical/tactical support from fellow communist sympathizers (usually from nations such as