The government of Colombia and FARC militants announced that a deal had been reached on reparations for war victims on Monday.
The agreement will include the set up of a special judicial system to deal with the accountability for war crimes. The courts would offer amnesties or lower sentences for those who admit their crimes, but exclude from amnesty those responsible for war crimes or crimes against humanity.
A government spokesperson Marcela Duran, speaking to press said,
“We are very pleased with this agreement on victims which no doubt is transcendental for what we are doing this process.”
A representative for Farc at the negotiation process said, “With this important step, it is nearly certain that this (peace process) is irreversible.”
The government and Farc militants have been in negotiation for over 2 years. At this time last year the two remaining topics to be discussed were reparations for war victims and the mechanics of ending the conflict. The Farc militants have remained adamant that they should not have to disarm.
Agreements have now been reached on 4 of the 5 main topics for negotiation: cooperation in eradicating the illicit drugs trade, agricultural reform and the legal participation of Farc militants in politics once a comprehensive agreement is reached and reparations for war victims.
The conflict between the two sides has killed over 200,000 people since 1964.
Colombian govt and Farc pledge end to conflict in 6 months (24 Sep 2015)
Farc calls for reduced government military presence and international mediators for release of captives (23 Nov 2014)
Farc militants send in top commanders for Colombia talks (25 Oct 2014)
Farc warns peace talks will fail if root causes are not addressed by Colombia (05 Aug 2014)
Pro FARC editor has prison sentence overturned by Colombian courts (20 Jul 2014)
We need your support
Sri Lanka is one of the most dangerous places in the world to be a journalist. Tamil journalists are particularly at threat, with at least 41 media workers known to have been killed by the Sri Lankan state or its paramilitaries during and after the armed conflict.
Despite the risks, our team on the ground remain committed to providing detailed and accurate reporting of developments in the Tamil homeland, across the island and around the world, as well as providing expert analysis and insight from the Tamil point of view
We need your support in keeping our journalism going. Support our work today.
For more ways to donate visit https://donate.tamilguardian.com.
