Time is running out for the Colombian government to reach a peace agreement with Narco rebel group the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).
Colombia has been fighting FARC for over 50 years. Top FARC negotiator Jesus Santrich does not believe peace will be reached by a March deadline.
Santrich states that fault lies with the government for having “changed the rules of the game.” The disagreement stems from issues relating to the legal proceedings that have been established for dealing with war criminals.
In September, the Colombian government and FARC rebels reached an agreement on transnational justice issues which is when Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos announced the March deadline for peace talks to end. Santrich publicly griped Sunday FARC rebels thought September’s agreement was definitive and has since been altered by the government.
The Colombian government maintains the September breakthrough regarding transnational justice issues was only partial and that the full agreement dealing with the matter was only reached on Dec. 15. There are now doubts about the viability of the peace talks concluding with a deal to end the 51-year conflict.
One of Colombia’s leading law enforcement officials, Inspector General Alejandro Ordoñez, stated Thursday the agreement between the government and FARC, “does not favor the victims or justice, but the victimizers and impunity.”
There are many leading voices in Colombia that are opposed to a peace deal with FARC other than Ordoñez. Former Colombian president and current Sen. Álvaro Uribe Vélez has been one of the loudest critics of the peace talks. Uribe Vélez was elected by his Senate colleagues as the “Best Senator of 2015” in large part due to his opposition to the peace talks.
The Colombian government and FARC rebels have been negotiating since November 2012 to end the longest-running conflict in the Western Hemisphere. Peace talks between the two sides have been taking place in Havana, Cuba.
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