Has Colombia reached a peace deal with FARC?
Peace negotiations have concluded, according to local media. Colombia may be just weeks away from the signing of a historic accord.
Peace negotiations have concluded, according to local media. Colombia may be just weeks away from the signing of a historic accord.
After four long years, representatives of Colombia鈥檚 government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia聽(FARC) rebels say they鈥檝e all but concluded negotiations over a peace deal that would bring a five-decade war to a formal end.
On Tuesday night, rebel commander Timole贸n 鈥淭imochenko鈥� Jim茅nez wrote on Twitter, 鈥淲e鈥檙e at the doorstep of important news that brings us closer to the final accord.鈥�
After the government published a photo of negotiators from both sides under a banner reading, 鈥淭he day is coming. We鈥檙e on the road to peace,鈥� speculation grew that an announcement could come as soon as Wednesday evening, according to the Associated Press.
With negotiations ended, rebel leaders must return to Colombia for what would be the group鈥檚 final conference as combatants, to inform their troops on the details of the accord, according to El Tiempo. The troops must then ratify them before leaders join Colombian president Juan Manuel Santos to sign the final deal.
The Colombian public will also need to ratify the deal through a simple plebiscite 鈥� a 鈥測es鈥� or 鈥渘o鈥� vote on whether to accept the accord. There鈥檚 no guarantee of it passing: In a mid-August poll, a razor-thin majority of respondents said they would vote to accept it, but other polls from this month show 鈥渘o鈥� voters prevailing.
But even as Colombia awaits final word on its peace deal, the nation has been inching its way toward a more peaceful society overall, as Howard LaFranchi reported in a cover story for 海角大神 in March:聽
Only if the public votes in favor of the deal, may the hardest work 鈥� and the greatest risks to an enduring social peace 鈥� begin. As 海角大神 noted in June, the Colombian government is signing onto a huge new raft of obligations in exchange for peace.
In June, the Monitor鈥檚 editorial board highlighted the unusual approach to peace pioneered by the two sides in the conflict. Even as armed conflict between them continued to smolder, the government and the rebels worked toward peace by negotiating agreements on a series of specific issues:
This report contains material from the Associated Press.