Peace Media (Colombia)

Peace Media Initiatives

The author's research on citizens' media in contexts of armed conflict in Colombia found two different modes in which communities use local radio, television, photography, video, and Internet technologies. In moments of crisis, when local communities are victimized by armed groups, citizens' media help communities find crucial information about food, shelter, medicine, and other logistical support. In crisis situations, these media also serve as impromptu forums where communities can discuss how to respond to the crisis and make collective decisions. However, Colombian citizens' media pioneers insisted in interviews that their long-term peace-building efforts are more important than their response in moments of crisis. This entry explores each of these two modes in which communities use their media to buffer armed conflict.

In moments of crisis, when unarmed civilians are under attack by armed groups, these media play important roles meeting the communities' [Page 394]information and communication needs. The following three examples illustrate this type of use:

In an isolated mountain village high in the Colombian Andes, Santa Rosa Estéreo, a small citizen-controlled radio station mobilized an entire community when one of its leaders was kidnapped by a guerrilla organization. In response to a challenge posed by guerrilla commandos, the community radio station organized a caravan of 400 people who piled up in every available bus, truck, or car. After a 10-hour journey through mountain passes and guerrilla-built roads, the caravan reached the guerrilla camp. Men, women, and children set up tents and cooking fires on the central plaza of the guerrilla camp while leaders made their demands known. The civilians would not leave until the hostage had been released. The guerilla commandos were overwhelmed by the presence of so many civilians and decided to free their victim. The triumphant caravan returned to town where the entire village celebrated with a feast, dancing, and music—the sounds of which were all transmitted by the radio station. By disrupting the sense of hopelessness and impotence induced by indiscriminate attacks of armed violence on civilians, the radio station facilitated a series of communication processes that restored feelings of self-reliance and solidarity that ultimately allowed this community to overcome the crisis through collective action.

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