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The FARC: The Longest Insurgency

by Garry Leech - £13.99  Zed Books Ltd (2011)
paperback    ISBN 13: 9781848134928 | ISBN 10: 1848134924

To many - including the Colombian, US, and EU governments - the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia is no more than a terrorist organization. Moreover, they claim that the FARC is only engaged in criminal activities and no longer maintains an ideology. But does this tell the whole story? Is it possible to engage in armed revolutionary struggle in order to achieve political and ideological objectives without perpetrating acts of terrorism? As the UN's special envoy to Colombia noted in 2003, it would be 'a mistake to think that the FARC members are only drug traffickers and terrorists'.
 
Part of Zed's groundbreaking Rebels series, Garry Leech has written the definitive introduction to the FARC, examining the group's origins, aims, and ideology, and looking at its organizational and operational structures. The book also investigates the FARC's impact on local, regional, and global politics and explores its future direction. As someone who reported from the frontline in Colombia for many years and was himself held captive by the FARC, Leech offers an unparalleled insight into one of the world's most high-profile armed revolutionary organizations.
 
Rebels is an exciting and innovative new series looking at contemporary rebel groups and their place in global politics. Written by leading experts, the books serve as definitive introductions to the individual organizations, whilst seeking to place them within a broader geographical and political framework. They examine the origins, ideology and future direction of each group, whilst posting such questions as 'When does a 'rebel' political movement become a 'terrorist' organization?' and 'What are the social-economic drivers behind political violence?'.
 
Provocative and original, the series is essential reading for anyone interested in how rebel groups operate today.

(Price & availability last checked: May 2019)