The UN has prepared a far-reaching mission employing hundreds of observers to verify an end to the fifty-year conflict between the government and FARC rebels. The deal is set to be tested by a referendum in October.
The conflict between Bogota and FARC has claimed hundreds of thousands of lives since the 1960s, most of them civilians. But in a surprise move last January, both sides asked the Security Council to establish a mission in Colombia for the express purpose of overseeing a truce. The council authorized the measure less than a week later, in a rare unanimous decision from the 15-member group.
Spokesman Stephane Dujarric told the press that the UN Peacebuilding Fund had set aside $3 million for "a project to support the collective reparations of victims in the armed conflict, and pave the way for the implementation of the peace agreement."
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon has said that the mission will comprise some 450 observers and a number of civilian volunteers spread out in 40 locations across the country.
"I think overall the atmosphere in the council on this is extremely happy to see this very good piece of news," said Britain's deputy UN ambassador Peter Wilson. "I think these are the kinds of details that we will want to be settling in a very cooperative matter."
Image: Reuters/E. de la Osa
An end to five decades of bloodshed
The ceasefire is set to come into effect on midnight on Monday, ending fifty years of bloody conflict. FARC first took up arms ostensibly to resist what it saw as corruption and oppression of the poor by the Colombian government, but soon turned to kidnapping ransoms and eventually drug trafficking to support its cause. The protracted conflict has also involved other far-left and far-right paramilitaries over the years.
After its initial implementation, the peace deal will go to a national referendum on October 2. Although the rebel group is deeply despised by the majority of Colombians, polls suggest that they will likely endorse the deal.
There is some concern, however, that low voter turnout and the contentious agreement to grant amnesty to guerillas who confess their crimes may lead to a rejection of the resolution.
Latin America's longest armed conflict comes to an end
The Colombian government has reached a historic truce with FARC, ending over half a century of violence with the leftist group. Latin America's longest conflict claimed at least 220,000 lives.
Image: Reuters/A. Meneghini
How the insurgency started
In 1948, the assassination of populist leader Jorge Eliecer Gaitan sparked political chaos in Colombia known as "the violence." Tens of thousands died and peasant groups joined with communists to arm themselves. Later in 1964, a military attack on the insurgency's main encampment led to the creation of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia or FARC.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo
What the rebels wanted
FARC's political ideology has never been well defined. Initially, it sought to weaken the oligarchy's grip on power. The rebels also wanted land reforms in a country where more than 5 million people have been forcibly displaced, mostly by far-right militias. However, the group lost popularity as it turned to kidnapping and illegal gold mining for funds.
Image: Reuters
How the US got involved
To help the Colombian security forces fight against the insurgency and to counter drug-trafficking, the US began sending billions of dollars under Plan Colombia. The US State Department classifies the group as a terrorist organization and its leaders face US indictments.
Image: Reuters/J. Vizcaino
The human cost of the conflict
Latin America's longest-running armed conflict is responsible for the death an estimated 220,000 people, while millions of Colombians have been displaced within their country. According to Bogota’s estimates, there are 7.6 million direct and indirect victims of the conflict. The country has more landmine victims than any country except for Afghanistan.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/C. Escobar Mora
Peace accord after decades of failed attempts
Peace talks between FARC and the government collapsed in the mid 1980s after at least 3,000 allies of FARC's political wing Patriotic Union Party were killed at the hands of right-wing paramilitaries. Efforts fell short again in 2002 after the rebels hijacked an airliner to kidnap a senator. The latest round of talks started in 2012 in Havana and culminated on August 24, 2016 with a deal.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/E. Abramovich
50 years of conflict
"We have reached a final, integral and definitive agreement" to end the conflict and build a stable, lasting peace, the government of President Juan Manuel Santos and the left-wing Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia said in a joint statement. In June, the negotiators had already announced a cease-fire agreement and a blueprint for how the estimated 7,000 to 8,000 fighters will demobilize.
