- published: 06 Jan 2014
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The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People's Army (Spanish: Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia – Ejército del Pueblo; FARC-EP or FARC) is a Marxist–Leninist revolutionary guerrilla organization based in Colombia, involved in the ongoing Colombian armed conflict. It is a peasant army with a proclaimed agrarian, anti-imperialist platform of Bolivarian inspiration. It claims to represent the rural poor in a struggle against Colombia's wealthier classes, and opposes United States influence in Colombia (e.g. Plan Colombia), neo-imperialism, monopolization of natural resources by multinational corporations, and paramilitary and government violence. It is funded principally through ransom kidnappings, gold mining and the production and distribution of illegal drugs.
Estimates of FARC's membership vary. The Colombian military has placed their number at 18,000 in 2010, of whom half were guerillas. FARC itself claimed in 2007 to have a military force of 18,000. According to Colombian president Juan Manuel Santos, speaking in 2011, FARC may have fewer than 8,000 members.