In Havana, the capital of Cuba and the city that has hosted the peace process dialogue between the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) for more than three years, Minister of Foreign Affairs Heraldo Munoz, accompanied by the President Michelle Bachelet, witnessed the historic signing of the Ceasefire Agreement reached by the parties, which puts an end to half a century of conflict.
The ceremony, held at the Palace of Conventions and attended by both Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos and the leader of the FARC, Rodrigo Londoño, was also attended by Secretary General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-Moon. In addition to the governor of Chile, the presidents of Venezuela, Nicolas Maduro; of Dominican Republic, Danilo Medina; and El Salvador, Salvador Sanchez, were also present.
The document, signed by the chief negotiator of the Colombian government, Humberto de la Calle, and guerrilla leader Iván Marquez, set a roadmap with mutual commitments so that after 180 days of the signing of the definitive agreement, which still has no date, total surrender of weapons will be carried out by the rebel group.
"Today the logic of words has prevailed rather than the logic of arms. That seems of the outmost importance, not only for Colombia and the Colombian people, but for all of Latin America," said Minister Muñoz after signing the historic agreement. "That this is the first day of the peace process and the last of the war I think is fundamental for a country that has lived half a century of armed conflict," added the national authority.
Regarding the role played by our country in the process, the head of diplomacy noted that "the fact that the President of the Republic is here with his top advisers in the field is a testimony to the fact that Chile has always been a part of this process, which both parties, the Colombian government on the one hand and the FARC on the other, have themselves recognized. We are very satisfied to have reached this point."
Chile's role in the peace process
The peace process between the Colombian government and the FARC began in 2012 and from the beginning Chile has participated as an accompanying country. Additionally, Chile has pledged to continue supporting Colombia in the challenges it will face in the post-conflict era, including the certification of disarmament, demining and transitional justice.
On this last matter, the Chancellor has stated that our country can support the process by sharing its own experiences it "has had in terms of successes and also with what has not worked," adding that "we are ready to share with them everything they believe will be of use through our experts, lawyers and specialists in transitional justice ".
In addition to its role as accompanying country of negotiations, Chile has promoted the establishment of the "Friends of Peace in Colombia" initiative that has also been replicated in countries like Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay, Costa Rica, Mexico, El Salvador and Argentina, and whose main objective is to closely monitor the peace process.