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Anyone loyal to Colombia's former President Alvaro Uribe are “the new terrorists,” said the Senate's Peace Commission in Congress this week, reported local media Friday.
Congressman Roy Barrerras told the Democratic Center (CD) party – which was founded by Uribe – that its membership is “dedicated to stimulating fear. You are spreading terror. And it seems that we are facing the new terrorists of Colombia.”
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Barrerras made the comments during a debate in Congress of the potential constitutional reforms that would be needed to allow for the implementation of a peace agreement, which is currently being debated between the government of Colombia and the FARC (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia) rebels in Havana, Cuba.
The Democratic Center party was one of two parties that has not supported the peace reforms, and has historically not supported the peace process or open discussions with the FARC guerrillas.
Barrerra's statements angered members of CD, a conservative party that operates under an ideology that has been dubbed “Uribism,” after the former president.
CD Senator Alfredo Rangel snapped back demanding a redress, saying the party “deserves respect.”
“Today you have insulted and offended us. We are not terrorists. You should know that terrorism is the use of violence for political purposes. I believe Senator Barreras had a slip of the tongue,” said Rangel.
However, earlier this week, Colombia's attorney general filed a request to the Supreme Court to investigate Uribe for his ties with paramilitaries, and participating in violence in the country for political purposes.
Also known as death squads, paramilitary groups have been responsible for much of the hostilities that Colombia has seen over the years. The former president is accused of being involved with paramilitaries when he was governor of his home state Antioquia from 1995-1997, which, allegedly, continued during his presidency (2002-2010).
As governor, Uribe began a controversial program to create armed, citizen policing groups, referred to as the “Convivir” program. Through Convivir, Uribe recruited hundreds of civilians to work as spies and extra-fighters in army-led operations. According to Human Rights Watch, these groups were “poorly supervised and regulated, and several were formed by known paramilitaries leaders or became criminal gangs.” Members of the Convivir program were also implicated in several killings in 1996 and 1997, with links to the state government.
He is also accused of being responsible for starting an initiative called “false positives,” in which paramilitaries killed civilians and dressed them up in camouflage outfits to pass them off as guerrilla fighters, in order to make it seem like the Colombian government was winning the war against the guerrillas.
CD Senator Jose Obdulio Gaviria also responded to Barrerras comments in Congress this week accusing the U Party, founded by current President Juan Manuel Santos, of being a “companion of terrorism,” referring to the fact that it has initiated peace talks with the FARC rebels, which is considered a terrorist group by the United States and the European Union.
RELATED: Colombia’s Peace Process Explained
Peace talks between the government and the FARC have been ongoing since 2012 in Havana, Cuba as the two sides try to put an end to the over 50 years of fighting in the country. Last month they achieved a landmark agreement regarding transitional justice, which many believe has paved the way to a final peace agreement being signed within the next six months.
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