Reconfiguring spaces in FARC's demobilisation camps: the cases of Tierra Grata and Pondores, Colombia.

After more than 50 years of civil war, the lack of a clear itinerary, unanticipated crises, and contingencies are seriously affecting the termination of the longest-lasting internal war in Latin America. The 2016 Peace Agreement signed between former guerrilla group Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia–Ejército del Pueblo (FARC-EP) and the Colombian Government established the ex-combatants' reinsertion into civilian life as key to the quest for pacification. Doubtlessly, after their demobilisation, the fighters' relocation and reintegration posed major challenges in this ongoing path to conflict resolution. The fragile implementation process is accompanied by countless practical obstacles, severe political obstructions, and vital insecurity problems. From 2017 to 2020, we conducted ethnographic fieldwork in several demobilisation camps (Espacios Territoriales de Capacitación y Reincorporación or ETCR), including the collection and analysis of photos, videos, and documents. In this article, we reconstruct the landmarks in the reinsertion process by focusing on the modifications of the use, and the symbolic production of spaces in two of these camps. Our research illuminates they ways in which the ex-combatants reconfigure their personal and social space. The results demonstrate that self-initiated spatial reconfiguration practices play a crucial role in the ex-combatants' reintegration into Colombian civil society. These changes are embedded in the interaction with adjacent local communities, public authorities and national or international institutions. Our case study yields insights for research on transitions from war to peace in cognate contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]