How Did The Medellin Cartel Influenced The Columbian Society?

To a large extent the Medellin Cartel under Pablo Escobar negatively influenced the Columbian society between 1976 and 1993 as many people were killed and the Columbian economy was affected for example the “Dutch disease”. However, Pablo and the Medellin cartel also positively influenced the Columbian society by their good deeds such as giving the poor money, schools and houses.

The Medellin Cartel was a ruthless, highly organized and much-feared, they built an empire that, at its peak, made more than $60 million a day With so much at stake, violence became one of the key weapons in the Medellin Cartel’s political arsenal .This Colombian drug cartel originated in the city of Medellin, Colombia. The drug cartel operated throughout the 1979
Pablo was seen as a god (Source G) which is a sin as you shall not have any gods before the lord our god but his word was law to the people of Medellin. His acts of generosity have still impacted the poor but it was to ensure the poor supports him unequivocally (Source D). His good deeds were seen as a strategy to camouflage crime (Source B). The support he gained aspired him to become a president however it is believed that he only joined politics to conceal his illegal activities (Source D) but because he had no shot in becoming president he unleashed his fury on his enemies (Source C) hence why in the 80s and 90s Columbia was known as the world’s murder capital at the time when Pablo Escobar was the leader of the Medellin Cartel (Source H) as many journalists, politicians and ordinary citizens (Source C) and about more than 5000 police officers were killed(Source H) during that time
Medellin cartel negatively influenced Colombia in the export sectors to the point where Colombian economists have compared the large influx of drug capital to the “Dutch disease”, which is the negative impact on an economy of anything that gives rise to a sharp inflow of foreign currency, such as the discovery of large oil reserves or drugs in this case. The currency inflows lead to currency appreciation, making the country's other products less price competitive on the export market. (Source A) Under Pablo Escobar large amounts of coca paste were purchased (Source c). The drug sector employed about 6% of the agricultural population but it was a short term mirage. The long term effect was when a total decline of more than 6% in agricultural employment opportunities occurred which affected the economy as more people were unemployed. Most people who did not want to engage in illegal farming were faced forced displacements thus leaving them with a few options but when the government managed to ban illegal farming as coca plants were sprayed in an effort to kill the production however the chemical used made it difficult for other legal crops to grow after it had been applied (Source D) thus affecting the agricultural sector of Colombia. The drug war in Columbia had a negative impact on the economy and its impact made it harder for Columbia to recover even after