Some 2,335 women have demobilized from illegal armed groups since 2006, many of them in order to have children, according to the Defense Ministry’s Office for Humanitarian Aid to the Demobilized (PAHD).
The principal reason for demobilization by female guerrillas is a desire to have children, reports El Heraldo, because illegal armed groups generally do not allow their members to have children.
According to PAHD, 778 guerrillas have demobilized so far in 2010. Of those, 653 were FARC guerrillas; 122 were ELN guerrillas; three were dissidents; 194 were women and 68 were minors.
PAHD, a government initiative connected to Colombian President Alvaro Uribe’s “democratic security” policy, provides support and reintegration into civilian life for demobilized members of illegal armed groups.