UN envoy says ex-FARC fighters in Colombia being killed

At least 19 former combatants from the leftist group, which signed a peace deal in 2016, have been killed in past three months, UN says.

A supporter of the Revolutionary Alternative Force of the Common (FARC) holds a paper dove with the name of a dead former rebel during a vigil in memory of former FARC fighters [File: Luisa Gonzalez/Reuters]

The United Nation envoy for Colombia called on Wednesday for improved protection for former combatants who continue to be killed “in alarming numbers,” and he complained of rising violence and massacres by other groups that have cropped up since the 2016 peace accord.

Carlos Ruiz Massieu told the UN Security Council that efforts must also be stepped up to fight impunity for these crimes, “including by bringing intellectual authors to justice”.

“Priority should be given to staffing and resources for the National Protection Unit to clear the backlog of pending requests for protection for former combatants,” he said.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ latest report to the council, circulated last week, said the UN political mission in Colombia verified 19 killings of former combatants from the country’s main rebel group, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), in the three-month period ending September 25.

The latest victims included one of the highest-ranking former FARC commanders, Jorge Ivan Ramos, who became a FARC political party leader and was killed on August 28. The UN chief said Ramos was actively engaged in implementing the 2016 peace deal with the government, including working on a crop substitution programme and the handover process for FARC assets.

The FARC party addressed an open letter to the National Liberation Army, known by its Spanish acronym ELN, which is one of Colombia’s last remaining rebel groups, expressing shock “over information that ELN was behind the crime,” Guterres said.

He said the latest killings bring the total number of former combatants killed so far this year to 50, including two women. Since the peace agreement was signed, he said, the UN mission has verified 297 attacks on former FARC fighters, including 224 killings, 20 disappearances and 53 attempted homicides.

Before the peace deal was signed with the FARC, more than 50 years of war in Colombia caused more than 220,000 deaths and displaced nearly six million people. An amnesty law was adopted covering most offences committed by FARC fighters.

Ruiz Massieu told the Security Council that the FARC’s laying down of arms and its transition into a political party has been completed and is “irreversible.” But he said the reintegration of FARC members into civilian life, “the search for truth, reparations and restorative justice for victims” and the transformation of rural Colombia remain enormous challenges.

“Despite continued attacks and stigmatisation against them, the vast majority of those who laid down their weapons remain engaged in the reintegration process, with nearly a third of them having received funding for productive projects through mechanisms created by the peace agreement,” he said.

But Ruiz Massieu said land for the former combatants continues to be “one of the most pressing matters” for reintegration.

He said the FARC’s decision to disarm “has contributed significantly to the overall reduction of violence since the signing of the peace agreement.”

“Unfortunately,” he added, “some of the areas that suffered immensely during the conflict continue to be besieged by violence from other actors who continue attacking social leaders, human rights defenders, former combatants and entire communities.

Recent massacres in various departments have served as a painful reminder of how innocent civilians, including young people, are falling victim to the actions of these groups.”

Colombia’s Foreign Minister Claudia Blum told the council “safety and security of former combatants, human rights defenders and social and political leaders remain our greatest challenge.”

She said the government is strengthening prevention and protection efforts and the attorney general has advanced investigations into 126 cases of attacks on ex-combatants, and so far 30 people have been convicted.

Blum called on the UN mission to address the FARC’s “lack of contribution to truth, reparations and justice.”

“Colombia demands members of the FARC political party to tell the truth and to recognise their responsibility regarding the recruitment of children, kidnappings, sex crimes, attacks against civilians, planting of anti-personnel mines and forced disappearances among other serious crimes,” Blum said.

“Likewise, they must give details on drug trafficking groups, money laundering, and the link between the former guerrilla and other criminal organisations.”

Source: AP