The Peace Commissioner, Otty Patiño, said this Thursday, October 24, that the top leader of the Second MarquetaliaIván Márquez would be alive, according to reliable sources.
“I received versions from other parts where they tell me that he is alive. Yes, he is alive. Well, they are reliable,” Patiño told journalists, at the end of a COP16 event in Cali.
However, Patiño told EL TIEMPO: “I can’t say it conclusively. In the midst of my inquiries, I received that information from a highly reliable source. “That source tells me that it is speculation and that there is no confirmation that he is dead.”
“My source is not Venezuelan, it is a highly reliable source”Patino added.
Rumors of the death of Iván Márquez
Given the rumors of the alleged death of Iván Márquez, Patiño indicated that the Government was verifying the veracity of information which said the man had died during a medical procedure.
It is worth remembering that this Wednesday, October 23, the chancellor, Luis Gilberto Murillo, told this newspaper that the Government will send Venezuela a diplomatic note to inform them if they know anything about the alleged death of the guerrilla leader.
(Read more: Colombia will ask Venezuela to confirm if alias Iván Márquez is dead)
When asked about how the Government received the news that Márquez has not died, Patiño responded: “with peace of mind.”
The Peace Commissioner pointed out that the peace process with the Second Marquetalia continues and that it does not depend on Márquez, nor on him, but on many people.
(See: Government reforms enter the final stretch of the year without a clear path: what is coming)
THE TIME