South America

We arrived and found a group of campesinos living in an old gymnasium in town. Many of them were from Pueblo Nuevo, a town an hour upriver that was caught in fierce fighting between FARC and the Army a few months ago. They also told us that the guerillas helped them grow coca and they were afraid to return to their town. Their situation has definitely gone from bad to worse. We made a trip the next day to Pueblo Nuevo to see if there was anyone left...

Carlos Avila Gonzalez and Phillip Robertson, for the Pulitzer Center
El Charco, Colombia

El Charco sits on a bend in the Tapaje river, a good sized town that is home to a growing population of displaced people from upriver. It is a violent and unpredictable place, filled with informers for the FARC and a heavy military presence. El Charco is poor and people have little or no civic services. The mayor told us that the city has gone without a supply of fresh water for more than two months.

Carlos Avila Gonzales and Phillip Robertson, for the Pulitzer Center
El Charco, Colombia

Carlos Avila Gonzalez and Phillip Robertson, for the Pulitzer Center
Tumaco, Colombia

Carlos Avila Gonzalez and Phillip Robertson, for the Pulitzer Center
Pasto, Bolivia

Carlos Avila Gonzalez and Phillip Robertson, for the Pulitzer Center
Pasto, Colombia

A tour through Colombia's restless south

Charles Lane, for the Pulitzer Center
Bogota, Colombia

Sin ti se apagó
El mundo,
Dios cerró
Todas las ventanas
Y extraviaron
Su azucar
Los ángeles del sueño.

…

Cuestión de Fe

Dios, que tú estés en todas partes
No lo sé;
No te encuentro.
Soy la falla en tu plan.
Pero si doy fe
Que te encuentras entre los muslos
De todas las muchachas
Y cuando tienes ojos
Son ojos de mujer enamorada

Carlos Avila Gonzalez and Phillip Robertson, for the Pulitzer Center
Bogota, Colombia

After decades of civil war, there are few in Colombia untouched by violence. Looking at civilians, army and paramilitary troops, Carlos Villalon presents original and file photos of the impact of war on a population.

Carlos Villalon chronicles life along the river Tapaje and the impact of the drug conflict between the U.S. backed-Colombian military, FARC guerrillas and paramilitary forces.

Combining the themes of paramilitary violence, drugs, and politics, these photos offer a glimpse into contemporary life in Colombia.

"The students are throwing rocks at the police," the taxi driver said on the way in from the airport. "It's dangerous, the government has called out the army." I felt like my luck was holding and slammed the video camera together but by the time we made it through the traffic, the students had already swept through the neighborhood. They left in their wake revolutionary slogans on every public building for several square miles. One read, "URIBE 100% PARACO" and accuses the president of being a member of a paramilitary organization, a death squad leader.