After a decade of brutal repression, a peace process with the main guerilla groups in Colombia was reached in 1984, with the government committed to guaranteeing democratic participation. One year later the Unión Patriótica (Patriotic Union, UP) was founded with this purpose. It did not take long to win popular support because its proposals included popular participation in state administration, the right of opposition, popular elections for local administrations, equal access to the media and information, land reform, and subsidies to small agricultural producers.