Colombian government, ELN agree to start ceasefire talks

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
11 Mar 2023 08:18

ELN veteran Pablo Beltran highlights that the first steps have been taken by the group and the Colombian government to reach a ceasefire.

Colombia's Vice President Francia Marquez and head of the ELN Pablo Beltran interact during the close of the second round of peace dialogues in Mexico City, Mexico, March 10, 2023 (Reuters)

Colombia's government and the country's last recognized rebel group, the National Liberation Army (ELN), announced on Friday that they had agreed to begin negotiating a ceasefire, as the two sides wrapped up a second round of peace talks in Mexico.

The goal is to reach an accord based on international humanitarian law, according to an agreement read by a member of the government delegation in the presence of both parties.

Pablo Beltran, an ELN veteran, highlighted that "the first steps have been taken to reach a ceasefire."

A truce was the desire of "the entire Colombian nation," government negotiator Otty Patino indicated, adding, "We have heard that cry, and we feel that the ELN delegation has also heard it."

The Colombian government resumed peace talks with the ELN after Gustavo Petro became the South American country's first-ever left-wing president in August.

His conservative predecessor Ivan Duque suspended the talks following a car bomb attack on a police academy in Bogota that left 22 people dead.

The next round of talks is due to be held in Cuba, though a date has not yet been announced.

Havana was the venue for the negotiations that culminated in the demobilization in 2016 of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), which for years was the country's largest rebel group.

'Stay at the table'

In January, the ELN reacted angrily after the government said it had agreed on a ceasefire with the Marxist guerrillas. The government was forced to backtrack, but the spat did not derail the negotiations, which are supported by Norway, Mexico, Venezuela, Brazil, Cuba, and Chile.

The talks resumed in Mexico City on February 13, following a first round in Venezuela in November.

The negotiators reported late last month that the Colombian government had recognized the ELN as a political organization, as well as a rebel group, distinguishing it from other armed gangs, such as drug traffickers.

Colombia's first Black Vice President, Francia Marquez, who was at the conclusion of the talks in Mexico, urged the negotiators to "stay at the table no matter what."

In 2019, before taking office, Marquez survived an assassination attack by unknown gunmen over her work defending the region's water resources against mining companies.

Founded in 1964 by trade unionists and students, the ELN has taken part in failed negotiations with Colombia's last five presidents.