INTERNAL SECURITY DEVELOPMENT IN COLOMBIA FROM 2002 TO 2012

The aim of this thesis is to analyze the internal conflict of Colombia from 2002 to 2012. The authors build on the theoretical work of Paul Collier which suggests that slow economic development can lead to internal instability, and makes the country more prone to the internal violence. The authors of this thesis analyze the economic development and internal security of Colombia using quantifiable data such as gross domestic product and annual economic growth rate as economic indicators and annual murder rate and yearly kidnaping statistics as security indicators. Aforementioned data are compared with the possibilities of being either directly or inversely proportional. The results show that Collier's theory correlates with reality in Colombia from 2002 to 2012, thus answering the main research question: What is the relation between economic and security indicators in Colombia in the years 2002 to 2012? Authors also offer a description of actors of internal conflict in Colombia. These actors are divided into primary: internal actors of the conflict such as leftist guerrilla, and secondary: external countries with substantial influence over the Colombian conflict. Authors believe that close examination of actors of the conflict helps to understand the broader picture of internal security development in Colombia.