2023-10-12 08:03:05
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Colombian President Gustavo Petro’s commitment to transforming rural and conflict areas marginalized for years and new peace efforts were the highlights of his first year in power, special envoy said of the United Nations for the country.
But Carlos Ruiz Massieu condemned the murder of nearly 400 former combatants who signed a peace agreement in 2016 and called for “urgent and concrete measures from the authorities for their protection, in addition to that of social leaders and human rights defenders.”
In an appearance before the UN Security Council on Wednesday, he said that the delay in implementing rural reforms has limited the transformation of rural and conflict areas that was expected from the 2016 peace agreement between the government and what was then the main guerrilla in the country, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).
“Although there is still a long way to go to achieve the ambitious objectives of the agreement in this regard (…) the government’s increasing efforts are on the way to achieving these reforms,” he noted.
The 2016 agreement ended more than 50 years of war that left more than 220,000 dead and almost six million displaced. More than 14,000 FARC fighters laid down their arms under the pact, but violence between some rebel groups has grown in part of Colombia.
Colombian Foreign Minister Álvaro Leyva told the Council that various forms of violence persist in the country and that “our renewed effort and commitment to peace must be maintained and be a superior task.”
The application of the 2016 agreement has not been easy and requires perseverance, but it must be “inviolable,” Leyva said, adding that Colombia’s decision to ask the Security Council to establish a political mission to verify the implementation of the pact — which It was made in a resolution that endorsed the peace agreement — “it was a sign of the will at that time to achieve reconciliation in an irreducible manner.”
A little over a month following the seventh anniversary of the signing of the pact, the chancellor said that Petro will assume direct responsibility in the coming days in a unilateral State declaration to fulfill the commitments contemplated in the Council resolution.
“(I want) to reiterate that the dialogues that continue to be carried out with the different armed groups and actors are a fundamental tool (…) to achieve total peace throughout the national territory and to alleviate the humanitarian impact of armed and criminal violence. ”Leyva said.
The government recognizes that this should go hand in hand with the implementation of its National Development Plan, he said.
Leyva indicated that, although the UN resolution affirms that the justice component must be applied to all those who participated directly or indirectly in the conflict, the government believes that it should “apply to those investigated or convicted of the crime of rebellion or other crimes.” related to the conflict even if they do not belong to the armed organizations in rebellion.”
In early August, the Council unanimously authorized the mission to help verify the implementation of a ceasefire agreement between the government and the main guerrilla active in the country, the National Liberation Army or ELN.
The Council also expressed its willingness to do the same if a ceasefire is reached with another armed group, FARC-EMC, led by former FARC commanders who rejected the peace agreement.
The United States deputy ambassador to the UN, Robert Wood, expressed concern regarding the ability of the ELN central command to maintain the ceasefire “at a time when several fronts under its command continue to show their discontent.”
Wood cited a recent press publication that indicated that 40% of guerrilla members would reject a peace agreement with Bogotá “because they continue to receive lucrative profits from drug trafficking and illegal mining.”
The U.S. representative called the FARC-EMC’s recent announcement that it would cease its attacks on the military and police and begin a 10-month ceasefire as a “positive development.”
“But we need to see more progress in this effort before the Council considers expanding the mandate further,” he said, reaffirming Washington’s commitment to working with Colombia to implement the 2016 peace agreement.
For her part, the British ambassador to the UN, Barbara Woodward, also applauded the recent advances of the Colombian government in terms of rural reforms and the restitution of lands to indigenous communities.
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