Ilegal Appropriation of Public Health Funds by Paramilitary Groups in the Department of Atlántico

Abstract

The sociopolitical fabric of Colombia is historically intertwined with multiple armed actors seeking to exert power and influence in various regions of the country. The United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC) found in the Department of Atlántico and in the Caribbean in general, a crucial enclave for their operations, both from an economic and political perspective. This work analyzes how the AUC illegally captured public resources in this department and the sociopolitical impacts that derived from these actions, in order to understand this phenomenon and thus design effective public policies. Through a historical-hermeneutic approach, a qualitative methodology and under a documentary analysis technique, the results are obtained the connections between armed actors and the political elite in the Atlantic, the capture of public health resources, as well as antiunion violence. in the health sector. It is concluded that in the case of Atlántico there was a notable intervention by the AUC in the health sector, which shows not only the administrative and political weaknesses, but also the interconnections that existed between the paramilitary power and the local political elite.