Reconciliation and the territorial peacebuilding in Colombia: the case of the Nasa community

Abstract

This paper analyses how the Nasa indigenous community of Toribío (Cauca, Colombia) has configured mental reconciliation models in spite of the violent feedback they received during the armed conflict in Colombia. For this analysis, the theoretical perspective of cognitive institutionalism is used. Empirical evidence was collected mainly through semi-structured interviews and focus groups. The results suggest that strategies of peaceful resistance, such as the creation of Permanent Assembly Sites, the Community Life Plan and the Indigenous Guard, have contributed to producing successful solutions in the search for reconciliation and peace in indigenous territories.

Keywords

• reconciliation
• peace
• armed conflict
• indigenous Nasa people
• Cauca
• Colombia