Organized crime in Colombia has many faces. Since the expansion of criminal activities in the 1970s, organized crime has been inextricably linked to Colombia's internal conflict and the efforts to sustainably establish peace. Since the demobilization of the paramilitary groups under the government of Álvaro Uribe Vélez and the Peace Accord between the guerrillas and the government of Juan Manuel Santos Calderón, the country appears to have made a huge leap towards achieving this goal. Against this background, this research seeks to analyze the political narratives of the Presidents Álvaro Uribe and Juan Manuel Santos regarding organized crime and the relationship that both presidents establish between organized crime and peace. By means of a qualitative content analysis of a selection of the speeches given by the two presidents between August 2008 and July 2012 based on the categories of the Narrative Policy Framework, the study was able to identify a paradigm shift in relation to the conceptualization of organized crime and the possibilities for action. This can also be associated with a change in the concep- tion of conflict and peace, especially regarding the actors involved.
