While the Huila Peasant Workers Association announced the Great Summit of Leaders for Peace with Social Justice in San Vicente del Caguan in Caquetá, the Assembly established that “the guerrillas are forcing the peasants to leave for a march”, however it has not been established if it is the same event.
Newspaper of Huila, Huila
By: Gloria Camargo
Given the escalating wave of violence that has been occurring in Huila and in a good part of the national territory by illegal armed groups, anxiety is felt in many municipalities.
For this reason, according to the President of the Association of Peasant Workers of Huila and National Executive member of Fedeagro, Lorena Sánchez, pointed out that an event called “Great Summit of Leaders for Peace with Social Justice, against war and the maintenance of the ceasefire between the national government and the central staff of the FARC EP”.
The National Call for Peace, according to its organizers, aims to “carry out the construction of a minimum peace agenda to overcome the crisis of the dialogues between the central staff of the FARC EP and the National Government.”
In turn, it stipulates that “all international cooperation organizations, the UN, MAPP OEA, the International Committee of the Red Cross, the Ombudsman’s Office, municipal ombudsmen, human rights organizations and citizens in general who yearn for a Colombia in peace”.
bilateral cessation
According to Sánchez, the meeting will take place on June 4 and 5, 2023 in San Vicente del Caguan from 09:00 in the morning.
“In this very important moment that the country is going through but also so difficult, the social leaders at the national level have proposed to meet in a great National Summit of social leaders for peace with social justice, against the war and the maintenance of the cessation of the fire between the National Government and the FARC EP.
We are with the task of carrying out a common agenda to begin to generate some key points where the National Government takes into account the bilateral cessation, which due to the fact that it has been lifted, the terrorist acts have returned. The anxiety was felt in the territory again, not only in Huila but throughout the country, ”he pointed out.
At the same time, he added that “so we are completely committed to the two actors sitting down again and obviously that the social movement has a space at that table to be able to advance in the construction of true peace.”
Serious accusations
Meanwhile, Carlos Ramiro Chávarro Cuéllar, deputy of the Departmental Assembly of Huila, made public serious accusations, where apparently this armed group was not only threatening the peasants of the region, but also forcing them to go out and march.
“The guerrillas are forcing the peasants to march, but it has not been established when or what the reason will be, but the purpose or one of the purposes for which they are forcing them to participate in that citizen demonstration is the extension of the bilateral cessation. within the framework of the so-called ‘Total Peace’ that has been broken weeks ago”, indicated the Deputy.
It should be remembered that the National Government, on May 22, partially suspended the bilateral ceasefire with the EMC.
Likewise, Chávarro Cuéllar, indicated that this constraint is very serious, because “they are not only pressuring citizens to come to the demonstrations, especially peasants to have to have ID cards.”
And he added that the armed groups “are usurping the functions of the State, occupying the space as if they were the State and limiting the mobility of the population, setting rules that are not proper to the legality that are already in the Constitution and the law, due to the absence of the state.
He also pointed out that “in our territory they are usurping the functions of the State, but they are also extorting.
I know of the case of a health professional where it is reported that in rural areas of Huila they are being asked to pay 300,000 pesos a month. Be careful with that, they are health professionals who are providing a service to preserve human lives in rural areas of the department, in addition to many other very serious things that are happening.
political control
Due to the serious denunciations and the acts of violence registered in Huila, such as the incineration of a humanitarian demining truck in Baraya, in the north of the department, a political control debate was announced for next Tuesday in June.
The following are summoned to the debate: Government Secretariat, Departmental Peace Adviser, Head of Contracting for the Department to review the issues of agreements that have been made with the Police and the Army.
Likewise, an invitation was sent to the Attorney General of the Nation, the Attorney General’s Office, the National Ombudsman’s Office, CTI, DIJIS and the UNP, through their delegates with territorial presence.
“Today we are absolutely invisible in the national context, different from what Meta, Bogotá, Tolima and even Caquetá are doing, for which I have called a debate in which we will jointly give all these warnings with the deputies and we will make other complaints with other information that we have”, said the Deputy in the first place.
But he established that “here it is worth noting that in recent years, and with special emphasis now, insecurity and conflict in Huila have deepened. Last year in a debate I did in December and this year, too, in the first quarter we warned of the threats against citizens, extortions that peasants and merchants are being subjected to, and the threats, even that have been made directly to us and others more.
We warned that there is a guerrilla presence and territorial control in Huila and we were always denied, we were always told that there was no presence here, that there was no territorial control, until this week when the warning of a possible attack against the Governor of the Tolima and Huila.
What we have been denouncing for three years has finally been accepted, and that is that there is a presence and territorial control of the guerilla in Huila, and for that we have to make a strategic plan, surround the institutions so that a security plan can be put in place. that guarantees life to the people of Huila, the honor of property and security”, he pointed out.
Collateral damage
Chávarro also assured that, as he had denounced in his candidacy for the Governorship in 2019, after guerrilla leaders such as alias ‘Iván Márquez’ and ‘El Paisa’, in addition to other members, did not accept the peace process, the concern to reach the south of Huila, was fulfilled.
“My concern, given that their terrorist activity and their economic activity depends directly on drug trafficking, is that they would move to the south of Colombia and obviously that would generate an effect like the one we are seeing at the moment and that is why Huila must have a strategic plan. security,” he said.
Will there be a dialogue?
After the partial rupture of the ceasefire last week, the National Government has announced that it will continue with the military offensive against the Central General Staff (EMC), considered the main dissidence of the extinct FARC.
Although the start of dialogue tables is expected, the Minister of Defense, Iván Velásquez, affirmed that there will be no restrictions for the public force in the departments of Guaviare, Meta, Caquetá and Putumayo.
Minister Velásquez emphasized that the military forces must carry out forceful offensive operations, always respecting human rights. Even in the case of establishing a dialogue table with the EMC, these operations will not cease.
For this reason, the government remains willing to set up the dialogue table with this dissident group, led by people who did not sign the peace agreement with the FARC in 2016. However, a start date has not yet been established nor have appointed interlocutors.
On the other hand, the Peace Commissioner, Danilo Rueda, expressed the persistence and determination of the national government to overcome obstacles and advance in the peace negotiations with the FARC dissidents.
Rueda highlighted the open willingness of the Government to start the talks and pointed out that, if there is a willingness on the part of the EMC-FARC, said negotiating table will begin. In this space, issues such as the ceasefire and other issues related to hostilities, which are of great importance to the population, will be addressed.