According to Marxist President Gustavo Petro, Colombia would donate properties seized from drug trafficking organisations valued at over $4.9 billion to farmers, women’s groups, youth groups, and universities.
In order to pay for victim reparations, the Andean nation has long attempted to sell confiscated items and property. Last year, a real estate company was established with the responsibility of managing some of the homes, farms, and other holdings.
However, it can be difficult to sell them because purchasers worry that past owners or their relatives will appear, especially since that prominent former right-wing paramilitary leaders have returned from serving narcotics sentences in the US.
“We must make it so that illegally-acquired assets pass to the Colombian people. It isn’t just any amount, it’s 22 trillion pesos ($4.9 billion),” Petro said at an event celebrating the appointment of officials, including the new head of the country’s anti-money laundering unit, reported Reuters.
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“It will require much courage,” Petro said, according to a statement.
In addition to promising ambitious social projects, Petro, who was elected in June, has stated that he will work to achieve “total peace” with both criminal gangs and the National Liberation Army (ELN), a communist guerilla organisation.
(with inputs from agencies)
