The Green Wars
Along with gold, the Spanish coveted emeralds, which had been used for trade and adornment for hundreds of years. They enslaved the local peoples, forcing them to work the mines of Chivor and Muzo. After independence from Spain in 1810, the new government took over the mines in 1871, granting mineral rights to various companies. This ushered in an era of lawless disorder.
The violence plaguing the emerald sector for nearly 100 years caused the government to finally close the mines in 1973. Three years later, private consortia entered the scene, but did little to quell the free-for-all. In the mid-1980s, all-out war erupted between rival groups, provoked by Gonzalo RodrÃguez Gacha, a leader of the MedellÃn drug cartel and partner of the notorious Colombian drug lord, Pablo Escobar. Called the ‘Green Wars’ or ‘Emerald Wars,’ they claimed thousands of lives. In 1991, the Catholic Church brokered a peace that was dominated by Victor Carranza, dubbed the ‘Emerald Czar.’ From an impoverished childhood, he became the most powerful figure on the emerald scene. His ascendancy was not, however, a romantic rags-to-riches tale, but a story of power, violence, and death. These days, Colombia’s turbulent past is in stark contrast with recent strides in its political climate. And as a producer of emeralds, the country is arguably one of the most important sources of the green gem in the world.
