465: A History of Coca Prohibition in Colombia

For decades, coca eradication and substitution, to purportedly stop the cocaine trade at its source, were Colombia’s only policy responses to a plant that had always been part of its culture. These policies failed to reduce long-term coca cultivation, while harming the most vulnerable communities in the country and escalating the Americas’ longest civil war.

The 2016 peace agreement marked the first significant shift towards a new approach, one that prioritized human rights and public health in the issue of coca.

This week, David Restrepo of David Restrepo the Centro de Estudios sobre Seguridad y Drogas explains the history of this prohibition in Colombia and a great deal more.

The Colombia News Brief is reported by journalist Emily Hart.

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