Tourism challenges facing peacebuilding in Colombia

Marie-Laure Guilland,Patrick Naef

doi:10.4000/viatourism.4046

Abstract

Declaring that a tourist Colombia guarantees a post-conflict reconstruction is not a performative act. We must therefore ask ourselves whether perceiving tourism as a tool in the service of peace is more of a myth or a reality. After a brief look at the recovery of Colombian tourism since the beginning of the 2000s, this article aims to observe some of the challenges that have characterised the sector since the signing of peace agreements between the government and the FARC-Ep, such as the rebuilding the country's image, prostitution and narco-tourism, the issue of access to land and resources, the promotion of eco-tourism and community tourism, and the role of this industry in the reintegration of demobilised combatants.

Highlights

Electronic reference Marie-Laure Guilland and Patrick Naef, « Tourism challenges facing peacebuilding in Colombia », Via [Online], 15 | 2019, Online since 22 November 2019, connection on 24 December 2019
After a brief look at the recovery of Colombian tourism since the beginning of the 2000s, this article aims to observe some of the challenges that have characterised the sector since the signing of peace agreements between the government and the FARC-Ep, such as the rebuilding the country’s image, prostitution and narco-tourism, the issue of access to land and resources, the promotion of eco-tourism and "community" tourism, and the role of this industry in the reintegration of demobilised combatants
As in the example of the Gulf of Urabá described in the introduction, the perception encouraged on a national scale clashed with those disseminated by external actors

Summary

Promote a new image of the country: its strength and limits

10 In 2013, the concept of "magical realism" - characteristic among many Colombian and Latin American literary works - was placed at the centre of ProColombia’s communication This time, the intention was to change the perception of visitors "by showing them the charms of Colombian tourist destinations, along with the progress made in terms of security and stability". (Naef 2018) the guides involved in "narcotours" or "Pablo tours" (the tourism built around the history of Pablo Escobar and drug traffickers) - strongly criticised by the media and the Colombian authorities, but very popular among international tourists - frequently used the concept of magical realism as part of their talk about the history of drug trafficking In this context, the television series Narcos helped to shape the perceptions of international tourists, most of all the American market which represented one of the main sources. Some visitors are still deeply impacted by the stereotypical image of the country, which it is struggling to dispel despite promotional efforts

Narco-tourism and sex tourism

Tourism and demobilisation

Tourism and access to resources

Findings

Conclusion