The coca trap

Many people living in rural Colombia depend on harvesting coca leaf for a living. “No one wants to do this, but circumstances force us,” they say. Things became even harder for coca farmers once the Colombian government signed a peace deal with FARC rebels. As part of the agreement, coca farmers were told to eradicate their cash crop in exchange for financial aid and technical support in switching to legal crops. In reality, all the money never reaches the farmers’ pockets, while the army destroys the coca plantations.

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