Last 301 - Colombia: Will we see History repeat itself?
Hi!
This week we had some interesting developments regarding the Colombian internal conflict were, for the first time since the current government is in power, some preliminary arrangements for peace talks between the Government of President Alvaro Uribe and left-wing FARC revolutionaries are taking place as I write this. Click for info (Spanish only, sorry...)
Without further thought, you could easily say: "Great! Peace talks are always welcome! So let the diplomacy games begin!"... But I see a problem with this... Why? Let me answer: Under Andres Pastrana's Government in 1999, peace talks with FARC rebels took place in San Vicente del Caguan. The conditions set by the rebels: a zone as big as Switzerland in the southern region of the country was to be "demilitarized" and prepared as a safe heaven for the guerrilla, allowing them to move freely there. This parcel of land eventually transformed into a parallel "Republic of Colombia" in which FARC was able to reorganize their war infrastructure and grow their drug trafficking business to unprecedented levels, giving them great financial health.
By early 2002, after a lot of ups and downs in the peace process with the government, the guerilla was still enjoying the benefits of having their own sovereign safe heaven with virtually no intervention from the Colombian State. The rebels kept growing stronger in force and numbers, while being unchallenged on illegal drug related activities in the demilitarized zone.
Now, I see today that the conditions that the rebels want to set for approaching the government are very similar to those set back in 1999, were they demand the demilitarization of two municipalities for a minimum of 45 days in order to start a preliminary "humanitarian exchange" of kidnapped civilians, politicians and military personnel for jailed FARC members... Will we see history repeat itself as it happened in San Vicente del Caguan in 1999 where the rebels just laughed irresponsibly in Colombia's face, or will the government actually DO something this time around to prevent such things to happen again?
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3 comments:
Attempt #2 since blogger rejected attempt #1....I articulated this much clearer the first time, but I was saying that I tend to be cynical with this kind of peace talk. Whenever I hear the words "peace talks" I am inclined to smile, but in this case, it's more of a half-@$$ed one. I'm certainly far from being confident in the abilities of el presidente to actually make something positive come out of this. I have a really bad feeling that yes, the cycle will continue, and this will not do much in terms of changing Colombia's 50 whatever years of conflict. What you say about guerrilla safe havens in "demilitarized" zones has me a little fearful of the fate of Cauca, which I believe is one of the zones in question this time around, as I know people there, and also the Nasa people have been struggling so long for peace and trying to get protection from the violence already there. The thought of guerrillas having more freedom within Cauca is not one I like so much.
Oh I hear you Zahida... I know people in Cauca as well, and that whole "demilitarized zone" business makes me shaky... My latter teenage years where very much influenced by this "Circus" with FARC in San Vicente del Caguan and I am not happy at all with the idea of new one coming into place... Goosebumps... This Narco-guerrillas just don't give me any sense of anything really... Change can be achieved by other means than armed and violent struggle... Im just tyred of war...
how is violence ever going to solve problems of violence? It's the least logical solution, IMHO. Seems like we can slowly make progress by winning over individuals and groups to the idea that change does not equal violence, and there are positive alternatives. But again, many obstacles in the way of this. One thing that surprised me greatly while I was in Colombia, when talking to an ex-child-soldier, and with many other youth, is how joining into violence is made to sound glamourous, beneficial, and the best way to create positive social chance via many methods of brainwashing.
I'd be very interested in hearing more about your experiences with the FARC Circus, as you put it, that you alluded to, part of my quest for knowledge and understanding of issues in Colombia.
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