Peace and Rural Development in Colombia : The Window for Distributive Change in Negotiated Transitions

In __Peace and Rural Development in Colombia__ Andrés García Trujillo investigates whether peace agreements geared toward terminating internal armed conflicts trigger rural distributive changes. Combining academic rigor with an insider’s perspective, García Trujillo shows that the peace agreement in Colombia opened an exceptional window for addressing rural inequality. Yet, despite some progress, he argues that the agreement’s leverage to stir change was severely constrained by opposing actors within and outside the government. García Trujillo later applies the framework developed for the Colombian case to explain key dynamics of other post-conflict societies that have dealt with agrarian issues under a transitional context, like El Salvador or South Africa. The original theoretical framework and empirically rich analysis make __Peace and Rural Development in Colombia__ an indispensable read for scholars and practitioners who wish to gain an understanding on the political economy of peacemaking, policy change, and rural development in Colombia and beyond. Cover Endorsement Half Title Series Page Title Page Copyright Page Dedication Contents Figures Tables Preface and Acknowledgments Abbreviations 1. Introduction The Story Research Questions and Debates Main Argument Approach Book's Organization Notes References 2. Theorizing Negotiated Transition Pathways to Rural Change Available Answers Critical Agrarian Explanations of Rural Reform Institutionalist Theories Fill in Gap on Policy Change Explaining Peace Settlements and Negotiated Transitions A Comprehensive Explanation of Rural Development Policy Change Explanatory Factors: Status Quo Policy Trajectory, Peace Exceptionality, and Weak Government Capacity Status Quo Policy Trajectory Peace Exceptionality Weak Government Capacity Conclusion Notes References 3. The Power Reproduction of Rural Elites Produces a Long-Term Status Quo Policy Trajectory Power Reproduction of Rural Elites: A Historical Explanation A Snapshot of Colombia's Rural Inequality Rural Elite Interest Group Formation A Weak Central State and Market Pressures State Absence Creates Conditions for the Armed Conflict Global Economic Trends in Agriculture Reinforce Rural Inequality and Power Asymmetries Recent Agricultural Policies in Colombia Uribe's Regressive Rural Policy Conclusion Notes References 4. War Gives Way to a Possible Peace: The Domestic and International Politics of Ending the Conflict Changes in Armed Conflict Dynamics Failure of Caguán Peace Talks Uribe's Democratic Security and Defense Policy From Uribe to Santos: Creating a Favorable Environment for Peace Political Recognition of the Armed Conflict Aligning Key Regional and International Actors for Peace The FARC's Decision to Negotiate The Peace Talks' Exploratory Phase The Negotiation's Strategic Objective and Agenda's Rationale Building Trust through the Rules of the Game Conclusion Notes References 5. A Policy Window Opens in Havana: Understanding the Inclusion of the Rural Development Item in the Peace Talks' Agenda The Item of Rural Development in the General Agreement The FARC's Framing of the Agrarian Issue The FARC's Agrarian Discourse The FARC's Colono Peasant Base The FARC Negotiators' Rationale in Havana The Government Frames Rural Development as Essential for Lasting Peace Seeing the End of Conflict as an Opportunity for State-Building Reformist Vision within the Government The Rural Reform's Political Viability Pressing Problems in the Countryside Pressure by Social Mobilization and Experts The Government's Boundaries Conclusion Notes References 6. The Comprehensive Rural Reform: A Robust Agreement with Effects on Policy The Exceptional Nature and Robustness of the Comprehensive Rural Reform Comprehensiveness and Specificity of the Rural Reform Provisions The CRR's Key Pillars: Land Access, Rural Public Goods Provision, and Agricultural Supports The CRR's Specific Measures Effects of the CRR on Rural Development Policy Santos's Rural Development Policy Land Access Agricultural Supports Provision of Public Goods Conclusions Notes References 7. Weak Government Capacity in Putting into Practice the Peace Agreement's Rural Development Provisions The Executive's Office Ineffective Efforts to Prepare the CRR's Implementation The Institutional Framework to Prepare for the Implementation Santos's Dependency on his Loose and Clientelistic-Oriented Political Coalition The Origins and Evolution of Santos's National Unity Coalition The Effects of Coalition Rule on the CRR's Preparation and Early Implementation Counterproductive Bureaucratic Appointments in the Agricultural Sector Agribusiness's Meaningful Access to Land Policy Decision-Making Agribusiness Access to Decision-Making over Land Policy Agribusiness Pressure on the Fast-Track Bills in Action Conclusion Notes References 8. The Right-Wing Framing Strategy Undermines the Peace Agreement's Legitimacy The Peace Talks: The Perfect Punching Bag of the Uribismo Regaining Political Power Protecting Landed Interests Avoiding Accountability on Human Rights Violations Positioning Negative Frames Against the Peace Talks Announcement of the Peace Process and of the CRR Announcement of the CRR Pushback against Rural Reform in the 2014 Elections The Plebiscite and the Renegotiation: Amending the Comprehensive Rural Reform The Renegotiation Process The Fast Track and the 2018 Elections The 2018 Elections Conclusions Notes References Chapter 9: Conclusions Insights for a Comparative Analysis Triggering Factors of Negotiations and of Addressing Rural Development Inequality Scope of the Rural Development Measures Adopted Institutional Capacity and Veto Players during the Implementation Explaining Varied Policy Outcomes Future Research Avenues Recent Political Developments in Colombia References Appendix 1: Timeline of the Peace Talks between the Colombian Government and the FARC, 2012-2018 Appendix 2: Budget Allocation in Rural Development Policy, 2003-2017 Index "In Peace and Rural Development in Colombia Andrés García Trujillo investigates whether peace agreements geared towards terminating internal armed conflicts trigger rural distributive changes. Combining academic rigor with an insider's perspective, García Trujillo shows that the peace agreement in Colombia opened an exceptional window for addressing rural inequality. Yet, despite some progress, he argues that the agreement's leverage to stir change was severely constrained by opposing actors within and outside the government. García Trujillo later applies the framework developed for the Colombian case to explain key dynamics of other post-conflict societies that have dealt with agrarian issues under a transitional context, like El Salvador or South Africa. The original theoretical framework and empirically rich analysis make Peace and Rural Development in Colombia an indispensable read to scholars and practitioners who wish to gain an understanding on the political economy of peace-making, policy change and rural development in Colombia and beyond"-- Provided by publisher