Rodeemos el Diálogo (ReD) Communiqué Regarding a Tripartite Verification Commission

20 January, 2016

We celebrate that the negotiators in Havana have asked the United Nations’ Security Council to establish a tripartite verification commission for a future definitive bilateral ceasefire. We recognise in this gesture the will of the FARC to put their arms beyond use, we welcome the willingness of the Colombian government to take this request to the UN, and we hope for a positive response. We consider that the participation of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States will strengthen the commitment of other Latin American countries which have already shown their unconditional support in many ways throughout the dialogues.

The proposal to create an unarmed verification commission, which will initially operate for the period of one year, will guarantee that the benefits of the de-escalation measures which have already benefitted those social sectors living in traditional conflict zones, will extend to the whole population. In Rodeemos el Diálogo we trust that increasing numbers of Colombians will, by way of diverse gestures and commitments, sign up to supporting the arduous process of building a Colombia in peace.

Diplomacy has been fundamental in reaching this formula, which depends significantly on the co-operation of other multilateral organisations. The success of the negotiations themselves, accompanied by various friendly States, is also the product of efficient diplomatic work. In particular, we know that the Embassy of Colombia to the UK has always played an important role in the peace talks and, as a transnational network deeply-rooted in Great Britain, we particularly value their contribution.

The head of the government’s negotiating team drew attention to President Juan Manuel Santos’s leadership, and the support of Foreign Minister María Ángela Holguín, in reaching this agreement. From the start of the negotiations, ReD has identified the need for the President, as head of the nation, to pro-actively lead this process. Today we reiterate how important it is that both he and his Executive, the negotiating team in Havana, those members of the FARC seated around the same table and their advisors, remain focused on the task of achieving a definitive bilateral ceasefire, as a step along the way to signing a final peace agreement this year. As the head of the FARC’s negotiating team said, “Colombia’s destiny is peace and not war.”