Organized crime found in most Amazon municipalities
A report based on the Amazon Underworld research finds illicit actors present in 768 of 1,310 municipalities across six Amazon countries: Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela. Colombia shows the highest share, with 98 percent of its municipalities affected, followed by Venezuela at 82 percent. Brazil's Comando Vermelho is reported in almost 500 municipalities, including in Bolivia and Peru. According to the same research, gold has overtaken cocaine as the region's most lucrative criminal industry.
Key facts
- Eight armed groups are present in 99 municipalities in the Colombian Amazon.
- About 78 percent of Colombia's rural population, nearly 10 million people, live under non-state armed group influence.
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Why it matters
Illicit activity across the Amazon affects environmental protection and rural communities in several countries.
What changed
First published from Mongabay