More than 20 years after his death, Pablo Escobar has become an object of fascination. "Narcos", a new series from Netflix, is just one of a crop of films, books and television shows about Colombia's most notorious drug-trafficker, the cause of so much violence in Medellin in the 1980s and 90s. Escobar was a ruthless mass murderer. For anyone who lived through those days, the attention he is receiving is distasteful. But if he can now be seen as a mere historical curiosity, that may be an indication of how far Colombia has moved on. Outsiders have often fastened on the country's failures. But over the past quarter-century it has been surprisingly successful in tackling some of its biggest problems. Escobar and his like were taken down; their successors today are "unknown", notes Mr Gaviria, Medellin's mayor. "They don't last more than three or four years and can't consolidate their power."
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