The Statistics Bazaar Statistics are another front of combat in the war on drugs in Colombia

The drugs scene in Colombia is characterized by the fact that it is dominated by a confusion of insufficiently supported statistics and speculative diagnoses which produce policies that reflect this chaos. The common denominator is the political manipulation of the data.

This prioritises the desire to present successful results that will endorse and guarantee the continuity of the existing policy. With this goal, contextual situations – such as the break down of organisational structures that make up a drug exportation chain, or large seizures of substances, extraditions etc. – are often used as a basis for inferring structural diagnoses that announce an imminent end to the drug economy.

The manipulation of data and diagnoses that has taken place in Colombia in order to consolidate the “success of the strategy” is now catching on in countries such as Mexico who look to Colombia as an exemplary country. Some experts and observers from the United States close to the decision-making circles on anti-drugs matters are also disseminating this interpretation.

Until the anti-drug strategies are based on a serious evaluation, one that represents what is really happening on the drugs scene, it will be impossible to adjust the policies or change the direction they have been taking for decades. In this context, the accuracy of the figures and their interpretation is crucial for producing more appropriate strategies.

This report looks at what is happening to coca and cocaine statistics in Colombia with the aim of raising a few questions on what the authorities present as the success of drug control in Colombia.

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