RT Article
T1 Colombia's cocaine syndicates
JF Crime, law and social change
VO 16
IS 1
SP 3
OP 39
A1 Lee, Rensselaer W. 1937-
LA English
YR 1991
UL https://krimdok.uni-tuebingen.de/Record/1884506917
AB Colombia's main drug trafficking coalitions - the Medellín and Cali syndicates - constitute powerful illegitimate interest groups. Traffickers (especially the Medellín coalition) exert political influence partly through violence and intimidation; yet the drug lords' political arsenal also includes non-coercive means-bribery, contributions to political campaigns and even open lobbying in the media. Conventional law enforcement strategies have been ineffective against the cocaine mafia, which is well entrenched in Colombian society. Wide domestic opposition to the drug war has prompted Colombia to opt for an unconventional strategy-to negotiate the voluntary withdrawal of major traffickers for the cocaine trade. A negotiation approach is extremely risky; yet, under tightly-controlled conditions, such an approach could allow U.S. and Colombian authorities to make significant progress in disrupting the cocaine multinationals and reducing the flow of Colombian cocaine into international markets.
K1 Cocaine
K1 Drug Trafficking
K1 Enforcement Strategy
K1 Political Campaign
K1 Political Influence
DO 10.1007/BF00389736