The former fighters of the now defunct Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) continue to receive death threats. Last weekend, the families of the former guerrillas who signed the 2016 peace deal with the government were forced to flee their homes and their livelihoods, fearing their lives were in danger.
In a message on Twitter, CSIVI, the Colombian agency responsible for upholding the peace accords, confirmed the “forced evictions of more than 300 peace signers and their close relatives.”
On Sunday morning, 99 women, 214 men and 51 children fled the Vista Hermosa territorial area, where they had lived since December 2016, when they surrendered their arms, were demobilized and started a new life. Trucks full of sacks of clothing, mattresses and pillows, old furniture, boxes of tools, kitchen utensils, toys and non-perishable groceries can be seen in photos of the scene. “They leave behind their dreams, their social community, their productive projects such as panela, ecological tourism, animal husbandry and crops of various kinds,” CSIVI said in the message on Twitter.
On July 2, residents load their belongings onto trucks. ARN COLOMBIA
The caravan, made up of 57 trucks, reached a sports center in the municipality of Granada, several hours from Vista Hermosa, on Sunday evening. The ex-combatants were accompanied by the police, the army, an ambulance and delegates from the United Nations, the ombudsman and the Organization of American States (OAS). “We accompanied the Vista Hermosa peace signers who, together with their families, have been relocated to a temporary location for security reasons. Comprehensive reintegration with safety and sustainability is essential to consolidate peace,” the UN Mission in Colombia wrote on Twitter.
The Agency for Reincorporation and Normalization (ARN) also said it was helping to provide logistical support. “The ARN, in coordination and accompaniment with other national and municipal institutions, was able to provide 170 tents, 20 mobile toilets, two bathroom batteries, 14 showers, 13 toilets, a kitchen and a communal dining room, which temporarily ensures a family-friendly stay,” said in a press release.
Despite the circumstances and how difficult it is for us to secure that #Peace Signer of the AETCR La Reforma (Giorgina Ortiz) had to move, from the ARN we organized all our logistics capacity and all our staff on site to accompany the temporary move pic.twitter.com/eBum9qnnn4
— ARN Colombia (@ARNColombia) July 2, 2023
The former FARC guerrillas in this region, who remain true to their commitment to peace despite the violence and persecution they have endured in recent years, must spend several days in tents while the government is able to hand over a new plot of land. Last week, for example, the government gave 188 hectares of fertile land to a group of peace signers in the municipality of Fonseca. According to ARN, the government is striving to provide fertile and safe land for ex-combatants so they can continue to integrate into civilian life.
The former FARC guerrillas decided to leave Vista Hermosa after receiving several threats. Two peace signers living in the area – Henry “Miguelito” Buitrago and Alfonso Correa Zapata – were also killed in May. At a recent press conference, a community spokesman announced that it was no longer safe for her to live in Vista Hermosa. “Our departure is imminent. We leave because they threaten and kill us. So far there have been two murders, nine direct threats and the displacement of many families,” the spokesman said.
Former FARC fighters and their families prepare to leave Vista Hermosa area.ARN COLOMBIA
In a press release issued after the killings, the community warned: “The sons and daughters of Georgina Ortiz [the name of the protected area in Vista Hermosa] They are in danger, they are being threatened and they are being murdered. They took away two sons, brothers and companions from two families who, thanks to the peace, had a chance to get them back.” It added that the killers were targeting the peace signers.
According to the NGO Indepaz, which has been monitoring the killing of peace accord signatories since 2016, Henry Buitrago was a former combatant who grew crops in the area where the Gulf clan and the 7th Front of the FARC General Staff lived. one of the most powerful FARC dissidents active today. 19 peace signers have been killed since the beginning of this year. A total of 375 people have been killed since the signing of the peace agreement in 2016. The latest killing occurred on June 30 in Dazuba, Antioquia, when gunmen assassinated Luis Aníbal Martínez Higuita, a community leader and former guerrilla fighter.
Vista Hermosa’s former guerrillas are not the first to be threatened. In March, almost 200 families were also threatened by FARC dissidents in the ETCR Mariana Páez area in the municipality of Mesetas. The government has promised to find land so they can leave the area safely. In 2020, peace signers were also expelled from Ituango, Antioquia.
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