A soldier collapses on the floor, prostrate with grief. His commander has just been brutally murdered by FARC guerillas – another victim of the country’s civil war. Despite the President’s best efforts, rebel forces are getting stronger. “The tragedy of the Colombian war is that the government cannot defeat the guerillas nor can the guerillas overthrow the government,” states former government peace negotiator Daniel Garcia Pena. Caught in the middle of the conflict are the civilian population. Villages controlled by the FARC are targeted by paramilitary death squads. Alex, a paramilitary commander denies responsibility for any murder. However, community workers tell a different story. “They cut a 75 year old grandfather up, piece by piece,” recalls local activist Gilberto Guerra. “We collected him in pieces but we couldn’t find his inner organs. There was a note that said ‘We took his organs so we could fry them up because we were hungry.’” Major Rodriguez readily admits that the Colombian army is not strong enough to crush the rebels and critics complain that the army secretly co-operates with paramilitaries. With both rebel forces and the army getting stronger, the future for Colombia’s civilians remains bleak.

Produced by ABC Australia