The foothills of the Andes visible in the horizon behind the dense tropical jungle of the Putumayo. Jardines de Sucumbíos, Colombia. July 16, 2015.
A monument in the town of Puerto Asís, Putumayo exalts the forces that have historically shaped the region: the original indigenous inhabitants, the Spanish catholic missionaries, the agrarian colonists from other regions of Colombia, and the military, represented in an aggressive conquering pose. Puerto Asís, Colombia. July 14, 2014.
A man spends his days ferrying people across the Rumiyaco river— largely campesinos cultivating coca for a living. Brisas del Rumiyaco, Colombia. July 17, 2014.
The FARC's presence, though palpable, is only evidenced in spectral traces, like this graffiti in a house in Brisas del Rumiyaco. Down the block, one of the village's only stores is well stocked with the pesticides and fertilizers necessary to grow coca for cocaine production. Brisas del Rumiyaco, Colombia. July 17, 2014.
A soldier from the Colombian Army's Special Engineers Brigade provides security for an Independence Day parade in Pasto, Nariño. Combat troops deployed to the front lines of the war against the FARC in the neighboring Putumayo department marched through the streets. July 20, 2014.
A boy plays at war in the shores of the Rumiyaco river. Brisas del Rumiyaco, Colombia. July 17, 2014.
Pigeons take to the sky as troops march in an Independence Day parade in Pasto, Nariño, a regional capital. Pasto, Colombia. July 20, 2014.
A soldier in full combat gear from the Colombian Army's ASPC Battallion # 23 marches down the streets of Pasto, Nariño in an Independence Day parade. Pasto, Colombia. July 20, 2014.
Eduardo López points to the mark left by a bullet on a tree close to the spot where his 15-year old son Deivi was killed by troops from the Colombian Army's 27th Jungle Brigade. Alto Amarradero, Colombia. June 17, 2015.
Eduardo's López's wife lost her 15-year-old son Deivi to the Army's incursion on May 17, 2014. She claims, as does everyone else in the community, that the four young men who were killed had no relation with the FARC. Alto Amarradero Colombia. June 17, 2014.
Yiner Esterilla's grave in the cemetery by Jardines de Sucumbíos. Esterilla, 25. was one of the victims of the "false positives" case. The Army claims that he was an active combatant, while family members maintain that this is a "pure lie." Jardines de Sucumbíos, Colombia. July 16, 2015.
A young boy, dressed up by his parents as a counterinsurgency soldier, attends a military parade to celebrate Colombia's independence day. Pasto, Colombia. July 20, 2015.
A shotgun shell on the ground close Eduardo López's house. Alto Amarradero, Colombia. July 17, 2015.
A campesino who grows coca for cocaine production on the road to Alto Amarraderos. There are few alternative economic activities given the lack of decent roads for reaching agricultural markets and the local dynamics of the region as a war zone. Alto Amarradero, Colombia. July 17, 2015.
Primary growth forest, freshly slashed and burned to clear a field for coca cultivation. Alto Amarradero, Colombia. July 17, 2015.
The foothills of the Andes visible in the horizon behind the dense tropical jungle of the Putumayo. Jardines de Sucumbíos, Colombia. July 16, 2015.
A monument in the town of Puerto Asís, Putumayo exalts the forces that have historically shaped the region: the original indigenous inhabitants, the Spanish catholic missionaries, the agrarian colonists from other regions of Colombia, and the military, represented in an aggressive conquering pose. Puerto Asís, Colombia. July 14, 2014.
A man spends his days ferrying people across the Rumiyaco river— largely campesinos cultivating coca for a living. Brisas del Rumiyaco, Colombia. July 17, 2014.
The FARC's presence, though palpable, is only evidenced in spectral traces, like this graffiti in a house in Brisas del Rumiyaco. Down the block, one of the village's only stores is well stocked with the pesticides and fertilizers necessary to grow coca for cocaine production. Brisas del Rumiyaco, Colombia. July 17, 2014.
A soldier from the Colombian Army's Special Engineers Brigade provides security for an Independence Day parade in Pasto, Nariño. Combat troops deployed to the front lines of the war against the FARC in the neighboring Putumayo department marched through the streets. July 20, 2014.
A boy plays at war in the shores of the Rumiyaco river. Brisas del Rumiyaco, Colombia. July 17, 2014.
Pigeons take to the sky as troops march in an Independence Day parade in Pasto, Nariño, a regional capital. Pasto, Colombia. July 20, 2014.
A soldier in full combat gear from the Colombian Army's ASPC Battallion # 23 marches down the streets of Pasto, Nariño in an Independence Day parade. Pasto, Colombia. July 20, 2014.
Eduardo López points to the mark left by a bullet on a tree close to the spot where his 15-year old son Deivi was killed by troops from the Colombian Army's 27th Jungle Brigade. Alto Amarradero, Colombia. June 17, 2015.
Eduardo's López's wife lost her 15-year-old son Deivi to the Army's incursion on May 17, 2014. She claims, as does everyone else in the community, that the four young men who were killed had no relation with the FARC. Alto Amarradero Colombia. June 17, 2014.
Yiner Esterilla's grave in the cemetery by Jardines de Sucumbíos. Esterilla, 25. was one of the victims of the "false positives" case. The Army claims that he was an active combatant, while family members maintain that this is a "pure lie." Jardines de Sucumbíos, Colombia. July 16, 2015.
A young boy, dressed up by his parents as a counterinsurgency soldier, attends a military parade to celebrate Colombia's independence day. Pasto, Colombia. July 20, 2015.
A shotgun shell on the ground close Eduardo López's house. Alto Amarradero, Colombia. July 17, 2015.
A campesino who grows coca for cocaine production on the road to Alto Amarraderos. There are few alternative economic activities given the lack of decent roads for reaching agricultural markets and the local dynamics of the region as a war zone. Alto Amarradero, Colombia. July 17, 2015.
Primary growth forest, freshly slashed and burned to clear a field for coca cultivation. Alto Amarradero, Colombia. July 17, 2015.