Deep in Colombia’s Pacific lowlands, the threat of unseen danger lurks beneath the rainforest floor. Landmines, planted indiscriminately by armed groups, have turned Chocó into a battlefield where civilians are the primary victims. The explosive devices, often hidden along rural paths and in fields meant for subsistence farming, have immobilized entire communities, forcing them into a state of siege.
“Chocó is mined. People are even afraid to walk,” said Governor Nubia Carolina Córdoba, who has spent the past year grappling with a relentless humanitarian crisis. Since taking office on January 1, 2024, she has overseen a region battered by conflict, displacement, and environmental disasters. Armed strikes imposed by the National Liberation Army (ELN) guerrilla, and the escalating violence with Clan del Golfo have left more than 15,000 people confined to their villages and some 3,000 forcibly displaced.
For many in Chocó, landmines are a daily threat, one that has claimed victims of all ages. “I recently met a 15-year-old boy in Sipí who lost his leg to a mine,” Governor Córdoba said in an interview. “It broke my heart. People don’t want to risk their lives, but they also have nowhere else to go.”
The violence and indiscriminate use of landmines have exacerbated the already precarious humanitarian situation. Chocó, one of Colombia’s most impoverished regions, has long struggled with neglect from the central government. While President Gustavo Petro’s administration seeks a solution to the on-going humanitarian crisis in Catatumbo – a mountainous region in the department of Norte de Santander – Governor Córdoba has pleaded for similar intervention in Chocó.
“We have been in crisis for over two years because of these territorial disputes, and yet the state has not responded,” she said. “This is affecting food security. No one dares to cultivate their crops and fruits anymore. People are just too afraid.”
Landmines are a legacy of Colombia’s decades-long internal conflict, used as low-cost weapons by guerrillas and paramilitary groups to control territory. While the 2016 peace accord with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) led to a decline in landmine incidents, new territorial conflicts have reignited their use. The ELN are the most prolific havesters of destruction, deploying mines to restrict movement and assert control over villages from Cauca to Arauca, Nariño and Chocó.
As of January 31, 2023, Colombia has recorded over 12,000 victims of explosive ordnance, with over 100 casualties reported last year.
The consequences are devastating. In addition to physical injuries, the presence of landmines has severed communities from essential services. Medical evacuations have become nearly impossible. “In the last two armed strikes, they wouldn’t let people leave,” Governor Córdoba explained. “Children died because we couldn’t get them out. No one would risk moving a boat, and helicopters couldn’t land.”
To combat the crisis, the government deployed 340 soldiers to the region in late 2024, a move that local officials say falls far short of what is needed. “More troops won’t solve this alone,” believes Córdoba. “We need a structural response that includes social investment and development.” A response that appears dangerously delayed as President Petro continues a tour of the Middle East, and many top cabinet posts, including the Ministry of Defense, have yet to find strong and dedicated leadership.
