Colombia's cocaine syndicates

Colombia's main drug trafficking coalitions — the Medellín and Cali syndicates — constitute powerful illegitimate interest groups. Traffickers (especially the Medellín coalition) exert political influence partly through violence and intimidation; yet the drug lords' political arsenal also includes non-coercive means-bribery, contributions to political campaigns and even open lobbying in the media. Conventional law enforcement strategies have been ineffective against the cocaine mafia, which is well entrenched in Colombian society. Wide domestic opposition to the drug war has prompted Colombia to opt for an unconventional strategy-to negotiate the voluntary withdrawal of major traffickers for the cocaine trade. A negotiation approach is extremely risky; yet, under tightly-controlled conditions, such an approach could allow U.S. and Colombian authorities to make significant progress in disrupting the cocaine multinationals and reducing the flow of Colombian cocaine into international markets.