Explore the roots of this unstable society that is a land torn by guerrilla warfare, a violent drug trade and an extreme division between rich and poor.

Includes index.

Always in the news -- Colombia's beginnings -- Spanish rule -- 1900s: modernisation -- Civil war: La Violencia -- Elections and the national front -- Guerrillas -- The drugs trade -- Colombia and the USA -- The rise of the army -- A failing state -- Plan Colombia -- Colombia in the 2000s.