In Colombia, the FARC dissident group, Segunda Marquetalia, agrees to a ceasefire “ unilateral » and the release of the hostages still held in captivity. Negotiators from President Gustavo Petro and those from the guerrillas, which has 1,600 fighters, have been meeting in Caracas, Venezuela since June 24 to reach a consensus.
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The date of entry into force of the ceasefire has not yet been specified. In this document signed by the government’s chief negotiator, Armando Novoa, and that of Segunda Marquetalia, Walter Mendoza, we learn that this de-escalation will begin as soon as the presidential decree on offensive military operations comes into force.
The rebel group therefore committed to a ceasefire, the release of the hostages, but also not to remain armed or in uniform in the ” urban centers » as well as on the « land and river routes “. The text specifies that the ” unilateral ceasefire of the Seconda Marquetalia does not imply the limitation of the constitutional and legal powers of the security forces “.
A meeting will be held in Tumaco, western Colombia, no later than July 20 to present this agreement of ” de-escalation “.
President Petro’s promises to end the conflict
The Segunda Marquetalia, the second dissident group of the ex-FARC behind the central staff (EMC), had announced the opening of dialogue in February.
President Gustavo Petro, the first leftist to come to power in Colombia in 2022, himself a former member of a far-left guerrilla group in his youth, had pledged to engage in dialogue to end this conflict that has been going on since 1964.
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