A ceasefire between the Colombian rebel group the National Liberation Army (ELN) and the government must be respected “100 percent” if it is to win the trust of the Colombian people, the head of the ELN delegation said on Monday ahead of new conversations in Havana.
Colombian leftist President Gustavo Petro resumed peace talks with the ELN last year, but those talks stalled in March after the ELN killed nine Colombian soldiers near the Venezuelan border.
Any ceasefire must be “attainable and measurable” to win over the Colombian people, ELN chief negotiator Pablo Beltrán told reporters shortly after arriving in Havana for the third round of talks since Petro’s election.
“We want… the Colombian people to see that a ceasefire is possible and that we have agreed to respect it,” Beltrán said. “This (would be) a preliminary ceasefire, not the end of the conflict, so we care that it works 100%, i.e. zero errors.”
Beltrán said the March attack that killed nine soldiers was sparked by an “offensive campaign” by the Colombian army.
“There have been a series of attacks. What was our response? To defend ourselves. That was the guideline,” said Beltrán.
The ELN attack, according to Petro’s government, undermined Colombian confidence in the group’s commitment to peace. But Beltrán said the Colombian army has also been killing its fighters in operations since the negotiations began.
“There is no ceasefire for now. And operations on both sides continue,” Beltrán said, reiterating his group’s desire for a ceasefire during the Havana talks.
Source: Terra
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