Peace On The Horizon As Negotiations With Colombia’s Rebel Groups Are Underway

Colombia’s most prominent rebel group the ELN, or National Liberation Army, announced earlier this week that they have killed a Russian hostage who has been detained by the group since November. The rebel group claim Arsen Voskanyan was attempting to steal and smuggle Colombian wildlife, including native poisonous frogs. He was killed in April after a failed attempt of escaping from the ELN. BBC News and other agencies have published the statements from the rebel group despite there being no other sources or evidence to support their claim.

The ELN is mostly funded by ransoms paid out from numerous hostage situations. As Colombia’s last hostile guerrilla group the government is hoping to successfully negotiate peace like they did with the left-wing extremist FARC group. US News followed the 50-year war between the rebel group FARC and the Colombian government, a war that killed nearly 22,000 people. A peace agreement with the group in 2016 allowed them to become a civilian organization and participate in politics. Members of FARC were given amnesty under the peace accord and last week announced their official political party. The announcement of Voskanyan’s death comes after just after the third attempt of peace negotiations between the ELN and the Colombian government, the first of which started in February of this year.

The decision of the ELN to disclose this information now is at a precarious time as Pope Francis is set to arrive in Colombia to meet with government officials regarding peace negotiations. Official Vatican spokesperson Greg Burke revealed that the Pope has been eager to visit Colombia for quite some time. As a Latin American native and nearly 80% of Colombia’s population of the Catholic faith, Francis is long overdue to make an appearance. However, the pontiff delayed his invitation until there was evidence of a viable peace process underway and continued efforts to establish peace.

The Pope is set to partake in a prayer meeting when he arrives in Colombia, Burke confirmed. The meeting is meant as a way of encouraging reconciliation and “the reconstruction of social order.” Each day of his trip the pontiff will explore themes to encourage people to join in the conversation about the countries current state. The themes announced include “Builders of peace, promoters of life” and “The dignity of people and human rights.” Francis will meet with victims of the war and former guerrilla group members during his talks but is not expected to have a formal sit down with official members of FARC or the ELN. Out of respect, the ELN has agreed to a bilateral ceasefire with the government for the duration of the Pope’s visit, praising the pontiff for his efforts in “bringing attention to the world’s poor and disenfranchised.” The Pope’s visit is expected to draw thousands of people to the cities of Bogota, Villavicencio, Medellin, and Cartagena where he will be speaking and receiving testimonials. This is a critical time for Colombia as it receives international attention and support in establishing peace between rebel and government groups.

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