The final declaration of the VII meeting of that association of political leaders insists that the understanding between the warring parties will lead “to the definitive dismantling of the war.”
We need, the signatories add, that peace in Colombia prosper and that the Havana Peace Agreement, which ended more than half a century of conflict, be finalized.
The Cuban capital was the headquarters of the negotiations between the government of Juan Manuel Santos on behalf of the Colombian State and the defunct Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia-People’s Army (FARC-EP).
The process concluded in 2016 with the signing of the aforementioned agreement, considered historic for putting an end to a conflict that ended the lives of thousands of Colombians.
On the other hand, the ELN continued military operations without the success of several attempts at dialogue initiated during the Santos administration.
Negotiations were completely halted after the January 2019 car bomb attack on the General Santander Police Cadet School in Bogotá, whose authorship claimed the guerrilla formation.
The Puebla Group also warned about the possibility of fraud, political persecution, and the risks associated with insecurity and physical integrity to which progressive leaders are subjected in the face of the general elections in Colombia, scheduled for next year.
The warning is backed by the almost 200 social leaders, human rights defenders and signatories of the 2016 Peace Agreement killed or disappeared less than a month before the end of 2021.
Faced with this situation, “we will be vigilant and prepare a special observation,” the document warns.
jha / avs
