Spotlight: FARC summit in Colombian jungle sets stage for peace

A ceremony in the Colombian city of Cartagena on Monday will mark a historic moment for a country riven by decades of civil war, disappearances and drug trafficking.

Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos and the top leader of the FARC, Timoleon Jimenez, will formally sign the peace agreement agreed in August in Havana.

However, ahead of this moment, the FARC has had some soul-searching to do. How does one of the foremost guerrilla groups in the world come down from the jungle and enter politics? How do trigger fingers stop gripping a gun to pick up a pen?

These topics have been under intense discussion for the last week at the Tenth National Guerrilla Conference, held by the FARC in the jungle of the southern department of Caqueta.

That the war has ended is not under question. On Friday, Ivan Marquez, part of the FARC's commanding group, told the conference that "we inform the country, the governments and people of the world that the guerrillas, delegated to this Conference, have given their unanimous backing to the final Havana agreement."

Only the FARC's First Front has refused to accept the deal and did not attend the conference, although Marquez invited them to reconsider.

He also announced that the FARC was expanding its central committee from 31 to 61 members, who face the challenge of outlining the manner in which the group will transition into a new political movement.

In a statement, the FARC that another plenary summit would be held to better define the political transition and the new name of the group. This will be held after the Oct. 2 plebiscite in which the Colombian people will vote on whether to accept or reject the peace deal.

A poll by Gallup Colombia, carried out between Sept. 14-18, found a majority of Colombians in favor of the deal, with 67.6 percent planning to vote Yes.

VARIOUS MOTIVES AT CONFERENCE

The FARC's summit, open to the press, also saw a number of people come in search of their relatives who joined the FARC over the years.

One man, of medium build and wearing a hat, spoke to Xinhua but chose to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals.

Hailing from the mountainous area of Sumapaz, the man had travelled 20 hours to attend the conference to track young men from his community who joined the FARC in the 1980s.

He happily told Xinhua that he had been in contact with seven of the men he now sought. He received their pictures on his cellphone in order to show their relatives that they are still alive.

"They seem well. They are happy to have joined the guerrilla, convinced that it was worth the sacrifice, even though some have not seen their families in 20 years. This will change when they can...enter politics," he explained.

FEARS REMAIN DESPITE PEACE

Witnesses Xinhua spoke to during the Conference stated that they fear a renewal of violence once they lay down their arms.

Harvey Arenas, commander of a FARC squad, said that "our fight sought the well-being of all Colombian people...without the (right-wing) paramilitaries who have always terrorized the Colombian people."

"The news said that armed groups had killed two farmers (this week) in the town of San Vicente," he added.

Cristóbal García, third commander of the FARC's 43rd Front, revealed that he joined the FARC at just 13 years old as he lived in a region with a heavy paramilitary activity.

"The paramilitaries killed my parents and I was left alone, orphaned, abandoned," he told Xinhua. "Then, the FARC appeared in the region. We got to know the guerrillas, I decided to join them and find another way of life. I now know this is part of history and we must face the political stage with great care."

Pablo Catatumbo, commander of the FARC's Western Front and a member of the negotiating team in Havana, said at a press conference that the issue of paramilitary activity remained a concern.

"There is great concern in the country for the growth of paramilitary groups, as the state has not met its promises to return dispossessed lands. In the agreement, there are mechanisms that will surely bear fruit in times to come," stated Catatumbo.

"Now comes the stage of implementing the accords. The people will have to participate," he added. "Social and political problems are not resolved at a negotiation table, tools are created but the fight must be carried on."

OTHER WITNESSES

Many rank and file members of the FARC plan to integrate civil society in different cities and actively participate in politics. However, they will continue to be linked to the group they have been a part of for decades.

"I will do what the party says. I am not thinking of breaking with the party. We succeeded with them and we are ending with them. If the party tells me to go and sow yucca, bananas or maize, I will do it," David Preciado, a guerrilla fighter who lost an arm in a fight with the military, told Xinhua.

Rudy Guzman, who joined the FARC at the age of 10 after his parents were killed by a far-right group, said he is now waiting for the decision of the Colombian people.

"It is now time for the people to realize why our struggle lasted so many years, why so many fighters, both men and women, gave our lives to see a Colombia at peace. I think it is time for them to support us as this peace is for them, not for us," said Guzman.

On Monday, September 26, Santos and Jimenez will sign the peace agreement in front of world leaders, including Cuba's President Raul Castro, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry.

However, the world will have to wait one week more until Oct. 2 to know if Colombia will truly remain at peace. Enditem