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CAFOD welcome Colombia peace deal ending over five decades of conflict


A peace deal has been agreed between the Colombian Government and the largest guerrilla group, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), bringing to an end the longest internal armed conflict in the western hemisphere.

CAFOD's Head of Latin America, Clare Dixon, said: "This is a great day for Colombia. Together with our partners we are celebrating this deal as an important step towards achieving peace in the country."

"The agreement is a major step forward on what will be a long road to peace in Colombia, one which requires the transformation of the country and the accompaniment and participation of all of Colombian society and the international community" she said.

"This is an historic moment for Colombia. The end of the armed conflict is near, and we hope this deal will bring an end to the violence and fear that has devastated the lives of over seven million people, particularly those living in rural areas; farming communities, Indigenous and Afro-Colombian Peoples."

The deal, which was reached on Wednesday 24 August in Havana, Cuba, will need to be approved by Colombians in a popular vote, which will take place on 2 October.

Sergio Coronado, Deputy Director of CAFOD's partner CINEP (Centre for Research and Popular Education), based in Bogota, said: "We are celebrating this news, this is the start of a long journey to transform the country, although we still face many challenges before we can say Colombia is a country at peace".

"The deal will have to be approved and accepted by the Colombian society, each of the six agenda items implemented, and institutions strengthened to ensure its implementation and the security of both those who have decided to lay down their arms with this deal, as well as the people who have lived in territories that until now have been under their control" he added.

In the past half-century, the armed conflict has killed at least 220,000 people in Colombia. More than 45,000 are missing, over 6 million have been displaced, and thousands have suffered sexual violence.

"This deal explicitly recognises the commitment of both sides to replace bullets with dialogue" said Coronado. "Peace building is a duty for the Colombian State and society that will require long term debates and consensus, we need to make transformations that only will be possible if we as individuals, organisations and institutions are open to change. That is why we must focus on the construction of peace from the regions".

A bilateral ceasefire was announced on 23 June - the last point of the peace talks agenda that have been taking place since October 2012 between the Colombian Government and the FARC in Havana, Cuba.

For more information see: www.cafod.org.uk


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