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By Staff Writers, teleSUR
teleSUR
Friday, Jun 24, 2016
Colombians of All Stripes Welcome 'The Last Day of the War'
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| A mural on the streets on Bogota, Colombia reads,”Peace is ours!” | Photo: Twitter / @UPPBogota |
Colombian politicians and citizens warmly welcomed the news that the government of Juan Manuel Santos and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia would sign a definitive bilateral cease-fire, marking the end of the five-decade war between the guerrillas and the state. The bilateral cease-fire announced between the government and the FARC is being widely interpreted as the end of the war.
With the lone exception of far-right former President Alvaro Uribe — who has vehemently opposed the peace process — politicians celebrated the milestone.
“It is time to end hatred, lies and fears and build reconciliation with all our compatriots. It is time to think about the millions of victims and also the combatants who died in the war,” said Senator Ivan Cepeda from the leftist Democratic Pole.
“It is the end of conflict, the end of hostilities … Without that war many opportunities will open. Starting tomorrow you look forward to what Colombia can be without that war with the FARC,” said Luis Fernando Velasco, president of the Colombian Congress and member of the Liberal Party.
David Barguil, president of the Colombian Conservative Party, said, “After 60 years of killing Colombians each other, after a conflict that has generated so many negative things in our history, this is the preliminary and definitive step for the signing of the final agreement.”
Meanwhile, longtime peace activist and former Senator Piedad Cordoba said, “Today is a wonderful day. For those who worked for peace when doing so was a crime, to achieve the end of the war is a poetic victory. What immense joy.”
“I returned from exile to work for the last day of the war, a new country now awaits us: a Colombia of reconciliation,” said Aida Avella Esquivel, president of the Patriotic Union.
In February the leaders of nearly all of Colombia's political parties joined President Juan Manuel Santos in affirming their support for the country's peace process, signing onto what the president has called “The Great Peace Pact.”
In that case, the only party to decline to participate in the “The Great Peace Pact” was the Democratic Center, the party of Uribe, who remained steadfast in his opposition to peace, even after Wednesday's announcement.
Although the final peace deal is not expected to be signed until July 20, the bilateral cease-fire is being widely interpreted as the end of the war.
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