The National Liberation Army (ELN) decreed the ban on circulating and working in the northeast of the country after one of its members was killed by “paramilitaries”. The government had recently reopened peace negotiations with the ELN.
mo12345lemonde with AFP
This is one of the first hollows since the resumption of peace talks between the National Liberation Army (ELN) and the Colombian government in November. The guerrilla warfare launched an “armed strike”, forcibly confined at least 9,800 people in the northeast of the country, the Colombian ombudsman announced on Friday, December 16 in a statement.
These civilities of the municipalities of Istmina, Medio San Juan, Sipi and Novita are “indefinitely confined” by the rebels and see restricted their movements, their daily activities, access to food and health services, A Explained the public human rights organization.
The ELN decreed on Wednesday the ban on circulating and working in this region where the “young Santiago Caceres” was assassinated Monday by “paramilitaries of wick” with the public authorities, according to the guerrillas.
According to the Ombudsman, members of the Cartel Clan Del Golfo – also called “Autodefensas Gaitanistas de Colombia” (AGC) – made a foray on December 12 in a district of Istmina, where a person was murdered.
a guerrillas which has 2,500 fighters
“Communities of African and native origin who live in this sub-region of Medio San Juan have been confronted with several successive confinements and massive displacements” in this area where “illegal groups” are rampant, added the agency Defense of rights.
This “armed strike” aroused criticism in the opposition and within the left government which completed in Caracas a first cycle of peace discussions with guerrilla warfare at the start of the week.
The government and the ELN, active since 1964 and which has approximately 2,500 fighters according to independent estimates, have notably announced “humanitarian actions” to limit violence in the now paralyzed region.
The talks had taken over in November on the basics of the peace process left unanswered by the government of Ivan Duque (2018-2022). They must continue in a second session in 2023 in Mexico even if no ceasefire has really been pronounced.