The decision to continue the restoration project despite the gang presence had been made after several hours of strategic discussion and risk assessment. We weren't naive about the dangers involved, but the potential for environmental transformation was too significant to abandon because of criminal operations that would continue regardless of whether we stayed or left. There was simply no possibility in which we let the gang continue their operations, so we might as well continue working on the park.
What I hadn't expected was the scale of President Santos's response to our security concerns.
