05-09-19 Latin American Weekly Report

The road to peace in Colombia was always going to be rocky but it hit a
major bump on 29 August. Nearly three years after the signing of a peace
accord with the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (Farc), the
guerrilla group’s chief negotiator in those talks reappeared in a video,
surrounded by other dissidents, issuing a fresh call to arms. Luciano Marín
Arango (‘Iván Márquez’) accused the government led by President Iván
Duque of betraying the peace accord. Márquez retains significant influence
but he has been in hiding for over a year and his message essentially
confirms what was an open secret. Demobilised guerrillas are unlikely to
flock to his banner unless Duque pursues a course advocated by the radical
fringe of the ruling right-wing Centro Democrático (CD) and moves decisively
against the peace accord. The Farc political party has denounced
Márquez et al and moved to expel them.