A symbolic disarmament ceremony in southern Colombia saw just 99 guerrilla fighters surrender their weapons—rifles, pistols, and grenade launchers—under a government-led peace initiative, despite the country’s decades-long conflict involving tens of thousands of armed combatants. The small-scale surrender contrasts sharply with the new president’s stance, who has publicly rejected past peace agreements as ineffective. Participants burned their uniforms and gear in a bonfire, marking a rare but limited transition away from violence that has left nearly half a million dead over six decades. The gesture raises questions about whether broader disarmament efforts can gain traction amid political opposition.
‘Total peace’ plan of previous government led only 99 of Colombia’s 30,000 armed combatants to disarm, but new president Abelardo De la Espriella opposes peace agreementsIn mid-June, 99 guerrilla fighters were flown by helicopter to a small settlement in a rural area of southern Colombia where they lined up and, one by one, handed their weapons to government officials: rifles, pistols, machine guns and grenade launchers.They also stripped off their heavy tactical vests, field packs and camouflage uniforms, which were each piled into a bonfire to mark the beginning of a new life away from an armed conflict that has claimed nearly half a million lives in the last six decades. Continue reading...
