Despite attempts by right-wing politicians and domestic warmongers to derail the monumental bilateral peace deal between the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC-EP, an overwhelming majority of citizens in the South American nation have jubilantly greeted the agreement that puts a halt to over five decades of bloody armed conflict.
Future steps toward solidifying the peace process include a plebiscite whereby the people of Colombia, from all walks of life, will give the agreement their stamp of approval. Other steps meant to solidify the peace deal include the substitution of illicit coca crops, the disarmament of leftist rebels and right-wing paramilitaries, and a process of transitional justice that includes a “Special Integral System of Truth, Justice and Reparations” meant to ensure that the country does not slide back into the violence that has gripped it for much of the last century.
In a statement delivered in June marking an agreement to end the war, however, FARC commander Timoleon Jimenez – or Timochenko, as he is known – stated: "We know that nothing will be achieved easily or quickly. We understand that the main beneficiaries of our efforts will be future generations. So we extend our hand to the youth. They are the ones called to build the new country and therefore called to the defense of peace and reconciliation, to promote a new type of political activity, the consolidation of civility and wider democracy."
Learn more at our teleSUR Colombia Peace Deal Special Feature
teleSUR takes a look at the reactions by Colombian people who viewed the final moments of the process ending the five-decade war, in Bogota, Colombia, August 24, 2016.