Colombian city faces worst violence in decades as armed groups wreak havoc
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Cúcuta imposes curfew as National Liberation Army (ELN) clashes with army in province bordering Venezuela
Residents of a violence-torn province in northern Colombia are bracing for further bloodshed as a conflict between rival armed groups spread to a regional capital in scenes residents said they had not witnessed since the cartel unrest of the 1990s.
The mayor of Cúcuta imposed a 48-hour curfew on the population of 1 million inhabitants in the hope of regaining control of the city after combatants of Colombia’s largest armed group, the National Liberation Army (ELN), attacked police stations with assault rifles and grenades and destroyed toll booths with car bombs.
At least six were injured as the Colombian army skirmished with dozens of combatants.
The wave of violence is the latest blow to President Gustavo Petro’s failing efforts to bring peace to Colombia by dialoguing with armed groups and 122,000 people in northern Colombia now require urgent assistance, according to the humanitarian organization Project Hope.
“It’s very tense. The police and military are on every corner and everyone is in a state of panic because we are all wondering where they are going to bomb next,” said Beatriz Carvajal, a 50-year-old teacher in the regional capital, who said businesses were shuttered, schools closed and the streets eerily quiet. “I am in a group with other teachers and none of us can remember anything like this since the 1990s when Pablo Escobar was blowing up whatever he wanted.”
The unrest started in the surrounding Catatumbo region in mid-January when the ELN began warring with dissident factions of the now defunct Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc), killing 80 people, displacing 50,000 and prompting Petro to declare a state of emergency and cut off fragile peace talks with the armed rebels.
Fighting also broke out in the Amazon rainforest, at the other end of the country, where 20 were killed, while this week the ELN placed thousands of residents of the Chocó region on the Pacific coast under strict lockdown.
The outbreaks of unrest in rural and urban areas hundreds of miles apart has added to a sense of loss of control that Colombia had not seen for years.
More people have been displaced so far this year than in the entirety of 2024.
“We cannot allow these terrorist actions to hold Cúcuta hostage,” the city’s mayor, Jorge Acevedo, told local media. “This is about protecting our people and restoring order.”
Colombia signed a historic peace agreement with the Farc in 2016, formally ending six decades of war that left 450,000 dead and millions more displaced.
New armed groups have since emerged to fill the void and Petro has made little progress with his efforts to bring peace by negotiating with all major armed factions.
The number of armed factions in the country surged from 141 in 2022 to 184 in 2024, said Colombia’s rights ombudsman.
Cúcuta’s location on the lawless border with Venezuela has made it a hub for illicit activity and about 25 groups are vying for control over cocaine trafficking, contraband and other criminal enterprises.
The escalating violence has fueled a growing humanitarian crisis, with a lack of water and healthcare and concerns for the conditions in refugee camps where outbreaks of parasitic infections have been documented.
“Violence has been relentless and the humanitarian crisis has reached catastrophic levels,” said Mónica Hoyos, Project Hope’s program director in Colombia. “Hospitals are at a breaking point, facing critical shortages.”
‘Devastated’: Beyond a few bad apples, police face new cultural reckoning
It’s been 18 years since a watershed report called out police culture in the wake of the Louise Nicholas rape case. Now, the police watchdog says the handling of complaints of sexual offending against former top cop Jevon McSkimming ‘graphically demonstrate’ the public still cannot have confidence that police officers will do their job ‘without fear or favour’.
by Laura Walters13/11/2025
In 2007, Dame Margaret Bazley released the report of the Commission of Inquiry into Police Conduct.
“These incidents … include evidence of officers condoning or turning a blind eye to sexual activity of an inappropriate nature; a wall of silence from colleagues protecting those officers complained about; negative, stereotyped views of complainants; and a culture of scepticism in dealing with complaints of sexual assault,” Bazley wrote at the time.
The commission of inquiry came in the wake of Louise Nicholas’ allegations of rape against a group of police officers, including former top cop Clint Rickards, and attempts to cover-up Nicholas’ complaints and pervert the course of justice.
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Damning report into police ‘rot’ leaves uphill battle to restore trust
Coster’s last stand
Other women also shared their experiences of how police had handled their rape and sexual assault complaints.
The inquiry resulted in a damning report that confirmed widespread culture issues in the force, and issues with the way police dealt with investigating its own, when they were accused of sexual violence.
The implementation of the 47 police-specific recommendations were closely monitored for the subsequent decade, and the broad shift in culture was celebrated.
In 2023 – 15 years on – police released their last monitoring report, with former police commissioner Andrew Coster writing that the Bazley report significantly changed the way police operated.
“When I became Commissioner in 2020, I wanted to advance a work environment where everyone can thrive and feel safe,” he said.
Now, in 2025, the force is facing another reckoning after an Independent Police Conduct Authority investigation has revealed how a group of the country’s top police officers – including then Police Commissioner Andrew Coster – covered up allegations of sexual offending against one of their own.
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The 135-page report into disgraced former deputy commissioner Jevon McSkimming and the police executive details how, ahead of the selection of a new top cop, the former commissioner, deputy and assistant commissioners and fellow top-tier cops tried to keep McSkimming from being investigated over claims of sexual offending and abuse of power.
Rather than investigate the repeated complaints from the young woman, those at the highest levels of the police force wrote her complaints off as “false”; as those of a woman scorned.
Coster – someone who has consistently been referred to by those on both sides of politics as a person with “integrity” – painted McSkimming as the victim of harassment by a vengeful woman. Then, police decided to charge her under the Harmful Digital Communications Act. While that charge had since been dropped, according to reporting by RNZ and Stuff, police continued to pursue a charge against the woman over emails sent to another cop.
Rather than put the survivor at the centre of their decisions, top brass rallied around to protect their own, and his career aspirations.
In his foreword to that 2023 report, Coster said while police have made “significant progress” as an organisation during the past 15 years, “our history is not to be forgotten”.
“It is part of who we are and a sharp reminder of what we need to keep sight of as we continue to contend with new challenges.”
Now, the new Police Conduct Authority report casts a cloud over the organisation and calls into question the broader culture of NZ Police.
“While Police have made significant advances towards a more positive culture since the Bazley inquiry, our findings graphically demonstrate that the settings in place to protect and enhance integrity are still not sufficiently robust to enable the public to have confidence that Police will do their job ‘without fear or favour’.”
The authority added that there needed to be “a sustained plan of action” to bring about further substantial change.
‘I was just so angry’
Nicholas told Newsroom that when she heard about the findings of the latest IPCA report, and how senior police officers had treated this survivor, she was “devastated”.
“I was just so angry. It was 20-odd years ago. We thought we got it right, you know. And it just takes one person or several people, just to bring it all down again; topple it all and put that distrust back into the police for survivors. And that’s where I got angry. How dare you.”
How the survivor was treated was “absolutely abhorrent”, Nicholas said, adding that these top cops had also brought hard-working police officers into disrepute.
The actions of a few impacted the reputation of the whole organisation, and created a fear of coming forward for other survivors.
To those people out there asking whether they could trust the police, Nicholas gave an assurance that they could.
As a survivor advocate, Nicholas worked alongside frontline police officers in the adult sexual assault teams and child protection teams, who she said were focused on ensuring the safety and support of survivors.
Indeed, one of the people who called out the way the investigation was being handled and the departure from normal procedures, was one of the country’s most senior adult sexual assault investigators.
According to RNZ, Detective Nicola Reeves was one of the police officers who stood up to superiors, telling the IPCA the way the investigation was being handled before she was brought in was “appalling”. She also pushed to speak to the survivor as part of her investigation – something that is best-practice, but hadn’t been done so far in the investigation and was not asked of her.
Police Minister Mark Mitchell said this highlighted the “outstanding” people in the police, who were willing to take a stand.
“I’m so proud of them, and I acknowledge them for having the courage to be able to do that, because that would not have been easy.”
Like Nicholas, Mitchell said he believed this was “an awful situation” contained to the previous police executive
“I know that the public will take a dint in confidence. I recognise that. Please try to understand this is a very small group of people. It’s very isolated,” he said.
“Yes, it is the police executive. It’s extremely serious. But try to have some confidence that there has been big cultural changes within the police, we have got outstanding police officers out there on the frontline that are doing great service every day and they deserve to continue to have our support.”
When asked why one group of top police officers would act this way, among a force with an improved culture, made up of officers with integrity, Nicholas said it was “all about power and control”.
“You get to that stage in your career, you’re right up there. You think you’re that, and then some, and it goes to your head.”
Impacts of hierachical culture
According to this latest Police Conduct Authority report, the overhaul of practices that came in the wake of the Bazley report has not permeated all levels of police.
The report laid out examples of a belief by the top cops involved that McSkimming was above the law – or at least above police processes – because of his rank.
The failure of senior officers to ask the right questions and verify the information they were being given was exacerbated by this belief.
The report also painted a picture of a police executive seemingly ignorant to the inappropriateness of their actions – even when pointed out to them by the police watchdog.
There was “a disturbing belief” that an investigation into alleged misconduct could not be entrusted to a more junior officer (even one specifically appointed to address integrity issues), because the difference in rank would prejudice their ability to act impartially.
People at very senior levels in the organisation failed to recognise, or accept, that there was anything of potential concern and, even during the IPCA investigation, seemed unaware of the inappropriateness of their actions.
“In many ways, the fact that actions were not perceived by the leaders of the organisation as undermining integrity makes the problem more insidious.”
If decision-makers did not perceive wrongdoing, even when it was drawn to their attention, it was unlikely they would take appropriate action to prevent it from happening again, the authority said.
“That is corrosive to culture change and fundamentally undermines trust.”
The authority was clear that the inappropriate way the complaints, investigation and communications could be explained by certain aspects of police culture – “a culture which is deeply rooted in the history, traditions and practices of law enforcement agencies in all jurisdictions comparable to New Zealand”.
The hierarchical nature of police meant the culture “rewards those who support the organisation and protect it from external criticism; and thus helps to maintain organisational solidarity”.
In some instances, like in high risk situations, this vertically aligned hierarchy could be a good thing.
“However, the culture can have negative consequences,” the authority said.
“It tends to produce resistance to external criticism, and intolerance and even bullying of those who challenge the status quo internally. It can lead to what is commonly termed ‘groupthink’ …
“That, in turn, can be manifested in a ‘Them vs Us’ mentality; a failure to challenge poor decisions; a tolerance of unethical behaviour; and a tendency to overlook alternative responses to problems due to pressure to conform or fear of ostracism.”
Many of those involved justified their own poor decision-making by saying they were merely doing what they were told.
In a statement to media, the woman’s lawyer Steven Lack, said police failed her.
“Over a period of years, she attempted to report allegations of serious physical, psychological and sexual offending by Mr McSkimming, then one of the most senior Police Officers in the country. Instead of being heard, she was dismissed and ultimately prosecuted for speaking out and raising her concerns.
“At every stage, the Police had the opportunity to engage with her, to properly assess what she was saying, and to investigate her allegations. They could have viewed her as a traumatised victim. They chose not to. They accepted Mr McSkimming’s denials without meaningful inquiry and placed the full weight of the criminal justice system on my client for more than a year until the charge against her was withdrawn. Understandably this has had a devastating impact on her.
“The way her complaints were handled should alarm all New Zealanders. It suggests that the Police were more focused on protecting Mr McSkimming’s career and advancement than on properly assessing serious allegations of offending against him.”
‘Systemic, institutional bias’
Jan Jordan, emerita professor of criminology at Victoria University of Wellington, spent about 20 years speaking to those studying at police training college about handling of cases relating to sexual assault.
In the early days, detectives told her women who made rape complaints were liars. In one case, a detective told her they had never dealt with genuine rape complaint in their whole career.
“I used to try and be staunch out there and go home in tears, sometimes, from feeling that I’d been beaten over the head by them for a couple of hours while they said: ‘women are just liars’.”
This wouldn’t happen now, Jordan said, adding that police had come a long way since the Bazley report was introduced. But culture issues persisted within police and society, more broadly.
The academic, who has reviewed police sexual assault case files to better understand the barriers to prosecution and conviction for survivors, said she did not believe this was a case of “a few rotten apples”.
“We’re talking about a systemic, institutional bias, still, that works in the favour of male privilege over female vulnerability to rape and sexual attack.”
Jordan said one of her long-held concerns was the masculinity of police organisations.
Trying to get a fair, victim-centred – often woman-centred – approach to dealing with complaints wasn’t easy for an organisation that had historically held up “quite strong, macho, hero-type images for officers to follow”.
“I know the police have done a lot to try and shift the culture away from the beer drinking, tough guy culture that there was in the past. But I think it’s still difficult to get away from the masculine bias of an organisation that reflects the masculine bias of a society.
While police had been working to overhaul its culture, rape myths continued to be prevalent in society, there was a lack of focus and funding put towards sexual violence and family violence prevention, barriers to prosecution and conviction remained – including a court and justice process that was often re-traumatising, and there had been a pushback against #MeToo.
“There was this whole jubilation in some quarters about #MeToo. And women are going to be believed and heard, and women just need to speak up.
“And since then, we’ve actually had a backlash against that, and I think it’s a backlash against women’s rights, and LGBT rights … and I think the expansion of the manosphere and the resurgence of particular masculine values is part of that as well.”
Not all police officers
Jordan said she saw police as reflecting some of that broader culture, while also acknowledging many officers worked really hard, following best practice and acting with integrity.
Jordan said she felt for officers whose integrity would no doubt be called into question by this saga.
She recounted the aftermath of Nicholas’ rape allegations, where those officers at the police college told her everyone thought they were rapists.
The authority made it clear its findings should not be seen as a reflection upon all police officers and the work they were doing.
“We applaud the advances that Police have made over [the past 18 years], and we are confident that the vast majority of officers do their job to the best of their ability and serve the public of New Zealand well …
“We stress that the actions that we have attributed to this culture should not tarnish the reputation of those officers throughout the country, who deal with difficult and risky situations every day with restraint, impartiality and fairness.”
Nevertheless, the integrity system needed to be viewed as an integrated whole, and aspects of the culture that undermined that system needed to be addressed at all levels, the authority said.
In view of what happened, there ought to be a focus on leadership but supported by stronger organisational settings that sustained good practice, including even when leadership failed.
Swift, decisive action
Current Police Commissioner Richard Chambers said he was “shocked” by the report’s account of departures from the expected processes for dealing both with sexual assault complaints and with investigations into police officers.
“The usual integrity checks and balances were bypassed, there was interference from the highest levels, and the ambitions of a senior police officer were put above the interests of a vulnerable woman,” he said.
On Tuesday, Chambers said events and findings set out in the report “made for appalling reading and showed a total lack of leadership and integrity at the highest levels of police”.
He apologised to the survivor, and announced he had retained the services of a King’s Counsel to undertake employment investigations where those involved were still working for police.
He also named a series of actions he was undertaking to improve the integrity of NZ Police.
The minister did not rule out further investigations, and some were questioning whether charges would be laid. And the Public Service Commission had put former police commissioner, now chief executive of the Social Investment Agency, on leave pending an investigation.
Nicholas said she had confidence in Chambers’ swift and decisive approach to dealing with the IPCA’s findings.
But shifting culture is likely to be a longer piece of work.
Jordan said close monitoring of the implementation of these recommendations would be an important part of the process, while also ensuring any monitoring reports were not just exercises in box-ticking.
