Heads of the delegations of Colombian government and ELN shake hands as they sit down to sign an agreement to restart the Colombian peace talks, in Caracas, on October 4, 2022. Photo: VTV.
The president of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, announced that the peace talks between the government and the National Liberation Army (ELN) will start on November 21.
The Colombian president announced the date in a press conference, where he was asked if the Colombian government’s group of negotiators was ready and when the dialogues will start.
“Yes, it is, already,” Petro answered, in response to whether the government delegation was ready for the start of the talks.
In early October, the Colombian government and the ELN signed an agreement to reestablish the dialogue process.
Colombia’s Government and ELN Sign Agreement in Caracas to Resume Peace Talks
The signing took place in Caracas, with the presence of representatives of Cuba and Norway, the countries that served as guarantors in the earlier dialogue with the ELN that was interrupted in 2018.
In September, Colombian President Gustavo Petro sent a letter to his Venezuelan counterpart, Nicolás Maduro, requesting Venezuela to serve as a guarantor nation in the resumption of peace talks with the ELN.
Apart from Venezuela, Spain and Chile will also serve as guarantors in the peace process, as announced by Colombian Foreign Minister Álvaro Leyva last month.
Senate Approves Petro Government’s ‘Total Peace’ Law in Colombia
The dialogue process was interrupted on January 18, 2019 when the then president of Colombia, Iván Duque, announced the suspension of the talks with the ELN due to a car bomb attack on the General Santander Cadet School located in Bogotá.
That attack took the lives of 18 people and wounded 68.
After Petro took office in August 2022, his government has been working towards total peace in Colombia through negotiations not only with the ELN but also with all other armed guerrilla groups and factions active in the country.
(Últimas Noticias) by Ariadna Eljuri, with Orinoco Tribune content
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/SC/AF
