The shadow of violence and the coronavirus threaten the peace process in Colombia
The signing of the Peace Agreement after several years of negotiations between the FARC-EP and the Government is one of the most relevant political events in recent Colombian history. Thirty-four years, nine governments and seven presidents were necessary for an apparent peace to come to this country in 2016. However, four years later Colombia is still working to close the open wounds of this conflict. The head of the UN mission in the Latin American nation presented on Tuesday the latest report on the situation in the country to the Security Council, in which he demands urgent measures against the killing of human rights defenders and denounces the emergence of organized crime networks dedicated, among other activities, to the recruitment of minors.
The effects of the coronavirus pandemic - this document warns - on the implementation of the Final Agreement for the End of the Conflict have been "increasingly evident". "The pandemic and measures of social distancing and isolation have affected peace-related programmes and have had a significant negative impact on vulnerable communities affected by the conflict," it warned.
While State institutions have adapted to this new reality, the persecution of human rights defenders has continued. So far this year, the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights has registered a total of 32 cases of homicides of social leaders (including 4 persons from ethnic communities and 4 women), and another 47 cases are being verified (including 3 women, 13 persons from ethnic communities and 1 member of the LGTBI community). In the complex Colombian scenario, the Department of Cauca continues to have the highest levels of violence against social leaders, according to this report.
For his part, Carlos Ruiz Massieu, head of the United Nations Verification Mission in Colombia and special representative of the UN Secretary General, António Guterres, has recognized the "perseverance" of both the government and the FARC in continuing with "peacebuilding efforts despite the difficulties posed by the pandemic. "The insecurity faced by former combatants of the FARC-EP, communities, human rights defenders, and social leaders continues to be our greatest concern. Unfortunately this situation has continued during the pandemic," he stressed, emphasizing that this violence is mainly "against those who have left behind weapons, those who defend human rights and those from communities devastated by the conflict.
During his speech he stressed that the number of ex-combatants killed since the signing of the Final Agreement in 2016 has risen to 210. "Violence continues to be the most serious threat to the consolidation of peace in Colombia," he warned. He has also said that the consolidated and integrated presence of State institutions is the best long-term solution to the violence that plagues rural regions. Ruiz Massieu also recalled that the Agreement designed mechanisms such as the Territorially Focused Development Programmes (PDET) or the comprehensive security and protection programme for communities and organisations in the territories.
The UN Secretary-General's Special Representative has urged the Government and the FARC to promote the leadership of women ex-combatants in social, economic and political reintegration. "I trust that the National Council for Reincorporation will give priority to the recommendations in its technical table on gender". "There is no justification for continuing to inflict violence on vulnerable Colombians who are experiencing enormous difficulties. We have seen how temporary cessations of violence can bring relief to suffering communities on the ground," she added. Finally, during his speech to the Security Council, he encouraged the Colombian population to remain "united" as they navigate this crisis and to keep "their actions focused on their common objectives of security, development and genuine and lasting peace".
Even so, the Government has argued that the implementation of the Final Agreement continues to progress despite this situation. The Colombian Foreign Minister, Claudia Blum, has also intervened before the United Nations Security Council, in the session for the presentation of the quarterly report of the UN Verification Mission. Blum insisted that, despite the context caused by the current health crisis, the Executive of which she is a member "continues to work tirelessly" to meet the terms set out in the document signed in 2016. "We have not delayed any of the areas of work that comprise the Peace with Legality policy. Its implementation is a priority for the government of President Iván Duque," she said.
The Colombian Foreign Minister has stressed that all entities in charge of working for peace in the Latin American nation have adopted measures for "the prevention, attention and mitigation of risks of COVID-19". "The beneficiaries of these measures include former combatants, victims and farmers committed to the Comprehensive National Program for the Substitution of Illicit Crops," she said.
Likewise, she has clarified in a press release published at the end of the meeting that "in the regions where the Territorially Focused Development Plans (PDET) are being implemented, 186 projects for $423 million have been financed with royalties from oil and mining exploitation, since the beginning of the Government. Government agencies also remain committed to 100,000 families who have expressed their willingness to abandon coca cultivation and move towards legality".
As stated in the agreement signed in 2016, the foreign minister has assured that the success and sustainability of the reintegration of former combatants "is decisive in avoiding new cycles of violence". "We continue to work with determination to support their productive projects. The number of beneficiaries of the projects launched in the first half of this year increased by 71% compared to the same period in 2019," she said.
Despite these data, the Colombian minister has denounced what she has defined as "a campaign of disinformation and distortion" by those who claim that "the government maintains a double discourse in the face of the implementation of the Agreement signed with the former FARC guerrilla". Under these circumstances, she explained that the Government has articulated various actions to strengthen "prevention, individual and collective protection, and support for investigation and prosecution".
The fourth point of the agreement established the steps to be taken to find a solution to the problem of illicit drugs. In this context, the foreign minister stressed that "the complex environment and the threat posed by organized armed groups dedicated to drug trafficking and illegal mining is the factor that generates the violence that is concentrated in certain regions of the territory" and reaffirmed the government's commitment to reducing this type of cultivation.
As for the denunciation of attacks against human rights defenders, Claudia Blum has indicated that between 1 January and 30 June 2020 and the same period in 2019, there has been a 30% reduction in the number of homicides. "If we compare these same periods in 2018 and 2020, the trend of reduction is confirmed. The Prosecutor's Office has achieved clarification in 54.3% of the investigations. The Colombian Government has strongly condemned the murders and attacks committed against human rights defenders, who constitute a fundamental pillar of our democracy, and will not rest until these attacks cease," she said.
"The Government of President Ivan Duque is firmly committed to building peace. The support of the United Nations is crucial to further progress in stabilizing and developing the territories most affected by violence and poverty. In the midst of the current global crisis, we will not diminish our efforts and will continue to devote all possible resources to achieving the results that our citizens deserve," she concluded. The UN has presented this report a few days after Cuba decided to maintain for the time being its status as guarantor of the implementation of the peace agreement between the Government of Colombia and the FARC-EP.
The peace negotiations between the Colombian Government led at the time by President Juan Manuel Santos and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia-People's Army (FARC-EP) took place in Oslo and Havana and resulted in the signing of the Agreement for the Final End of the Conflict. This document established the roadmap to be followed during the coming years and laid the foundations for the implementation of various reforms. In particular, a rural one, since the lack of security in these places has conditioned the fact that the conflict persisted over time. This reform aims to end extreme rural poverty and reduce the gap between the countryside and the city, promote equality and develop agriculture. To this end, a land fund was established to allocate land to peasants and rural communities. It also proposed the implementation of development programmes with a territorial, population, ethnic and gender focus. These are some of the many measures proposed to reactivate the areas most damaged by the conflict.
The second point advocated democratic opening to build peace. The agreement spoke of facilitating access to the political arena in order to increase the number of opinions in Congress; on the other hand, the parties were called upon to define the Opposition Statute, promised in 1991. It also demanded the existence of mechanisms for electoral transparency, as well as a reform of the existing regime and a commitment to implement the role of women in politics. All of this was done with the aim of promoting debate on issues of national interest in the country. One of the measures that has had the greatest impact has been the creation of "Transitional Peace Constituencies".
The third point of the Peace Agreement aims to put a definitive end to hostilities between the FARC and the Government. A timetable and a series of measures are established under the guiding principles of respect for human rights. The most important protection measures are the comprehensive security system for the exercise of the policy and the creation of a special protection body of a mixed nature within the National Unit for the Protection of Ex-Combatants. The justice measures are the design of a policy of submission to criminal organizations and an organized crime investigation unit.
The security measures included an elite police force, an integrated security and protection programme for communities, instruments for the prevention and monitoring of criminal organisations and a national mechanism for the supervision of services. Finally, political measures included the signing of a national political pact, the creation of a National Security Commission and the prevention and fight against corruption. Finally, the steps to be taken to guarantee a ceasefire and the abandonment of all types of weapons for the reincorporation of the FARC into civilian life were established.
The fourth point was the search for a solution to the problem of illicit drugs. To this end, this agreement promotes the creation of a comprehensive program for the cultivation of illicit crops or the increase of the state's presence in the affected territories. In addition, several prevention policies were devised to avoid the consumption of this type of substance as it is considered a public health problem. Finally, it reinforces the mechanisms to dismantle criminal organizations that are dedicated to the distribution, commercialization or planting of this type of substance. In the last point, the foundations were laid on which a new Colombian transitional policy would later be constructed, focused on designing policies to defend the rights of the victims: truth, justice, reparation and guarantees of non-repetition.
The Health Ministry reported Wednesday that the Latin American nation has surpassed 159,898 infections of coronavirus by adding 5,621 new cases on Tuesday, 994 of them in the department of Antioquia. According to the latest daily bulletin, at least 170 people have lost their lives, 45 of them in Bogotá, followed by the departments of Atlántico (40), Córdoba (26), Valle del Cauca (16), Antioquia (15), Cundinamarca (5), Chocó and La Guajira (4), Bolívar and Nariño (3).