Accessibility links

Breaking News

More FARC Rebels to Turn in Weapons, Move to UN Zones


FILE - Weapons belonging to rebels of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) are stored at a rebel camp in La Carmelita near Puerto Asis in Colombia's southwestern state of Putumayo, Feb. 28, 2017.
FILE - Weapons belonging to rebels of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) are stored at a rebel camp in La Carmelita near Puerto Asis in Colombia's southwestern state of Putumayo, Feb. 28, 2017.

Former fighters from Colombia’s FARC rebel group are handing over thousands of weapons and other materials to international officials in special camps, as the group’s six-month disarmament process continues.

The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) signed a peace agreement with the government late last year to put an end to their part in Latin America’s longest-running armed conflict, which has killed more than 220,000 people and displaced millions.

Weapons handed over to the United Nations will be stored in secure containers until they can be turned into three memorial statues. The rebels are expected to turn in all arms by June, and about 8,000 are to be registered by this weekend.

Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, FARC, gather at their camp in La Carmelita near Puerto Asis in Colombia's southwestern state of Putumayo, Wednesday, March 1, 2017. March 1 was the deadline for the FARC to turn over 30 percent of their arms. But logistical delays setting up the rural camps where rebels are gathered has slowed the process.
Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, FARC, gather at their camp in La Carmelita near Puerto Asis in Colombia's southwestern state of Putumayo, Wednesday, March 1, 2017. March 1 was the deadline for the FARC to turn over 30 percent of their arms. But logistical delays setting up the rural camps where rebels are gathered has slowed the process.

Rebels move to new homes

Members of the Jacobo Arenas rebel unit, which operated in the mountains of Cauca province, were among 6,900 FARC fighters who left behind clandestine camps where they had lived for decades, crisscrossing the country on foot, by boat and by truck to get to 26 zones monitored by the United Nations.

The zones will be their homes for the foreseeable future as they complete judicial processes to determine whether they will serve special sentences for war crimes or receive amnesty.

Ex-fighters will also reunite with long-lost families and make amends to victims.

A United Nation observer shakes hands with a rebel of Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) before a meeting in La Carmelita near Puerto Asis in Colombia's southwestern state of Putumayo, March 1, 2017. Thousands of leftist rebels are taking an important step in Colombia’s peace process by providing to UN observers an inventory of the weaponry they will soon surrender.
A United Nation observer shakes hands with a rebel of Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) before a meeting in La Carmelita near Puerto Asis in Colombia's southwestern state of Putumayo, March 1, 2017. Thousands of leftist rebels are taking an important step in Colombia’s peace process by providing to UN observers an inventory of the weaponry they will soon surrender.

Concerns about camps

Under the terms of the peace accord, the FARC, which began as a peasant uprising 52 years ago, is to form a political movement in the South American nation.

The FARC’s leadership has raised concerns about conditions in some of the camps, including the lack of permanent toilets and facilities such as gyms they say were agreed to in the accord.

Some FARC members have told local media they will not hand over their weapons until the camps are more habitable for fighters, who are well used to rough-and-tumble living conditions in poverty-stricken rural areas.

The government says it is working as quickly as possible to finish each camp, that the FARC is partly responsible for construction and that the facilities are far superior to the tarp and bamboo lean-tos traditionally used by the rebels.

Local media reported Friday that some fighters may stay in camp areas after they demobilize to continue agricultural projects.

The accord has been heavily criticized for sparing rebels jail time. A first version was narrowly rejected in a referendum last year, before being modified and passed by Congress.

Authorities have said about 300 rebels are refusing to demobilize.

  • 16x9 Image

    Reuters

    Reuters is a news agency founded in 1851 and owned by the Thomson Reuters Corporation based in Toronto, Canada. One of the world's largest wire services, it provides financial news as well as international coverage in over 16 languages to more than 1000 newspapers and 750 broadcasters around the globe.

XS
SM
MD
LG