Between agreements and disagreements: Social perceptions of peace in Cauca, 2012-2016

Abstract

The false dualism between the friends and enemies of peace, begins to fade after breaking down the filigree of these positions, because inside these monolithic blocks we find heterogeneous and varied horizons. In this sense, and bearing in mind that the Cauca is a central piece in the peace puzzle, this article seeks to unravel the nuances within some of the social actors in the department; which, despite their unrestricted support for the process, show differences in other aspects with important actors for peace (such as the government itself). To do this, we divide the document into two parts. In the first instance, we define, based on the Peace Studies, the concepts of conflict and peace (we also approach the idea of strategic selectivity, since it allows us to conceptually address the internal fractions of each of the positions). In the second part, we take a look at the various changes that the peace process went through and the social support it received, which was transformed depending on the correlation of forces at key political moments, such as the presidential elections of 2014 and the plebiscite of 2016.