"We want to demonstrate that although we're not a rich country, we can do something that is humanitarian ... but at the same time is an intelligent and sound migration policy," Iván Duque tells NPR.
Colombia's president has unveiled a program to let undocumented Venezuelan migrants live and work legally in the country for up to 10 years. Nearly a million Venezuelans in Colombia lack legal status.
The country is the top flower exporter to the U.S. When the pandemic hit, farmers feared they'd have to destroy flower beds and lay off thousands of workers. Here's why that didn't happen.
The move will allow migrants to work legally in Colombia, obtain 10-year residence permits and access social services including healthcare and COVID-19 vaccines.
Human rights activists have reported a sharp increase in sexual assaults and human trafficking involving Venezuelan women and girls trying to reach Colombia since the border closed amid the pandemic.
About 2 million Venezuelans have settled in Colombia in recent years amid their country's deep economic crisis. Some of the migrants are shocked by their neighbors' anti-Venezuelan attitudes.
The latest target was a statue of Sebastián de Belalcázar, a Spanish conquistador who founded two Colombian cities and led a military campaign that killed and enslaved thousands of Indigenous people.
The Supreme Court ordered house arrest as it investigates whether he had a role in a scheme to bribe witnesses in a case involving to right-wing paramilitary death squads.
The most dramatic case occurred earlier this month when a scramble to steal gasoline ended in a hellish fireball. Other recent incidents involved residents pilfering a humanitarian aid vehicle.
From a generous urban farmer to a roving mariachi band, people are using their talents to help others. Read their stories — then nominate a problem-solver in your community.
Seeking ways to boost to its economy, Colombia has set aside three tax-free shopping days this summer. Critics fear they could become super spreader events for the coronavirus.
"It's not just city hall that has to act. You have to promote solidarity among neighbors," says a mayor who encourages residents sheltering in place to hang red rags so others will know to help them.
Since the country's 2016 peace deal, former rebels have joined armed groups operating in narcotics trafficking, extortion and illegal gold mining, according to the Colombian military.
Colombian officials say 12,000 Venezuelans have taken buses back to their home country since Colombia imposed restrictions to stop the coronavirus outbreak. Many other Venezuelans are fleeing on foot.
Currulao combines drums and marimbas and is popular along the country's Pacific coast where most of the population is Afro-Colombian. One verse goes: "We no longer have peace in our paradise."
Colombia is home to about 1.7 million who fled neighboring Venezuela in recent years. Now that it has shut down to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, the migrants say they are extra vulnerable.
The public radio stations "can be fundamental in constructing peace," says Juan Pablo Madrid, an analyst at Bogotá's Foundation for Press Freedom. But some employees are facing threats from gangs.
FARC guerrillas agreed to disarm in a 2016 peace deal, and Colombia's government promised to protect them. But in the years since, nearly 200 former FARC rebels have been attacked and killed.
Nature has taken over this onetime penal colony turned national park, surrounded by waters popular with divers for their sharks, rays and whales. A resort manager calls it a "mini-Galápagos."
Major rallies started on Thursday as demonstrators are "angry over a great big long list of issues." President Iván Duque is trying to get a grip on the unrest by announcing a "national dialogue."
The country wants to shake its image as an illicit narco nation. Now it's already home to more than two dozen legit cannabis companies, with exports to Canada and the U.K.
The Petronio Alvarez festival is the big event of the summer — five days of music and food and fashion. More than 100,000 people travel to celebrate Afro-Colombian culture.
