Abstract

RUIZ R., Nubia Yaneth. Forced Displacement in Colombia: a Historical and Demographic Review. Estud. demogr. urbanos [online]. 2011, vol.26, n.1, pp.141-177. ISSN 2448-6515.

This article is concerned with migration in Colombia due to the population’s involuntary displacement, usually regarded as forced migration. A general review of the problem is provided, highlighting its importance in the contemporary debate on population problems and the demographics of the problem are analyzed using an overview of history in which the country’s current situation is rooted. This is used to provide an overall analysis of the characteristics of forced displacement in Colombia.

The uprooting of nearly four million exiled persons within Colombia is one of the most noticeable consequences of the internal conflict undergone by the country for nearly five decades. The fact that it is forced migration, in which the population’s lives are often at risk means that movements are not planned. It is a chaotic process in which the population is violently uprooted.

The research summarized in this article seeks to determine the implications of this displacement for the rural land abandoned by the population and the urban territories that receive millions of displaced persons.

Keywords : migration; forced displacement; internal conflict; violence; rural land ownership; concentration of property; forced migration.