A/HRC/4/48 page 18 Paramilitaries 84. In spite of the commitment to cease hostilities, declared at the end of 2002, violent actions by members of paramilitary groups against the civilian population continued to be reported up until the conclusion of the demobilization process, particularly murders, threats and forced displacements in Norte de Santander, Chocó, Cesar, Santander and Guajira. 85. According to the Ombudsman’s Office, in 2006 the demobilized paramilitary groups failed to fulfil their obligation to hand over the children in their ranks. Also, no record exists of children recruited by such groups.15 Information was received about children demobilized from the different groups who were not handed over to the Colombian Family Welfare Institute (ICBF).16 86. The country faces a process of transition from the phenomenon of paramilitarism, which is passing from a context of armed conflict to a situation of criminality involving illicit activities such as drug trafficking, fuel theft and extortion. At present, the structures of the old paramilitarism appear less visible and more fragmented, which makes it more difficult to combat them. Many demobilized and non-demobilized paramilitaries, led by middle-ranking cadres, seem to have decided to continue committing crimes. The most visible results of this phenomenon are the emergence of new illegal armed groups, the increase in crime rates in many cities, and the continuing pervasiveness of drug trafficking and its structures. 87. The emergence and activity of these new groups reflect a failure to fulfil the commitment to demobilize and dismantle their armed structures. In regions such as Cesar, Meta and Córdoba, there have been reports of the presence of strongholds of fronts or groups that are officially demobilized but continue to engage in the same criminal activities as before. 88. In Nariño, the presence of a new group, the “New Generation Peasant Self-Defence Organization” - well-armed, militarily well-organized, with responsible leaders and the capability of exercising territorial control and carrying out military actions against other armed groups - is a source of great concern. Members of this group are allegedly responsible for, inter alia, two massacres of peasants. 89. New groups of an ambiguous character have also been identified; they are made up of demobilized and non-demobilized fighters, linked to drug trafficking and involved in social control activities, delinquency and profiteering from illicit economies; they have been held responsible for numerous murders and threats. A massacre in Antioquia and several murders in Cesar and Córdoba were attributed to demobilized paramilitaries. 15 Ombudsman’s Office, UNICEF, Caracterización de los niños, niñas y adolescentes desvinculados de los grupos armados ilegales: Inserción social y productiva desde un enfoque de derechos humanos, pp. 61 and 62, November 2006. 16 According to ICBF, until 31 October 2006 there were 349 children and adolescents in their programme. The majority had been demobilized from the FARC-EP.