TLCs, paro nacional agrario y movimiento social en Colombia

Abstract

In August 2013, Colombians were surprised and awaken by the peasants of the country. Through a strike that lasted several weeks and included blockades and protest, the rural movement forced the whole society to look to the field, its actors, its problems and its products. Despite the initial negative attitude assumed by President Santos, the peasant movement managed to stand firm and worked to strengthen their actions and its links with other guilds and urban networks. The Government had no choice but to recognize the mobilized actors and dialogue with them. Despite its internal differences, it’s worth to wonder if the peasant’s fight during the months of August and September could be considered another step towards setting up a social actor who will unite popular and valuable, but scattered, efforts. In this article we will analyze the main events of the national rural strike, and also try to discern their causes and their perspective from the point of view of the social movement and its relations with the authorities.

Keywords

• social movement
• neoliberalism
• Colombia
• free trade
• peasant