Colombia kidnappings drop

The number of reported kidnappings in Colombia in 2016, 188, constituted a 92% reduction compared to the total in the year 2000, when more than 3,400 people were kidnapped. Colombian officials attribute the drop in kidnappings to the nation’s work toward peace with the rebel group Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). 

The Colombian government and FARC agreed to a peace accord that was ratified by the Colombian senate on Nov. 24. It was their second attempt at a treaty after the first was voted down by the Colombian public in October. 

At the time of the ratification, the war between Colombia and FARC had been going on since 1964. During that conflict, FARC often used kidnapping as a tactic. In 2016, FARC members reportedly did not commit any of the 188 kidnappings.