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Card. Parolin, Catholic aid agencies welcome Colombia peace accord

(Vatican Radio) The Secretary of State of the Holy See, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, is among the world's senior diplomats attending the signing of the historic peace accord between the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia - or FARC - a rebel group that has conducted an insurgency in the country for more than fifty years.Several Catholic aid and development agencies from Europe and North America, active in Colombia and across Latin America, have issued a joint statement welcoming the accord, including the Catholic Agency for Overseas Development, CAFOD, the official Catholic aid agency for England and Wales.Please find the text of CAFOD's press release, below***********************************************Catholic agencies welcome official signing of peace agreement in ColombiaCatholic agencies from Europe and North America have welcomed the announcement that the Colombian Government and the FARC guerrilla group will sign a peace agreement on...

(Vatican Radio) The Secretary of State of the Holy See, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, is among the world's senior diplomats attending the signing of the historic peace accord between the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia - or FARC - a rebel group that has conducted an insurgency in the country for more than fifty years.

Several Catholic aid and development agencies from Europe and North America, active in Colombia and across Latin America, have issued a joint statement welcoming the accord, including the Catholic Agency for Overseas Development, CAFOD, the official Catholic aid agency for England and Wales.

Please find the text of CAFOD's press release, below

***********************************************

Catholic agencies welcome official signing of peace agreement in Colombia

Catholic agencies from Europe and North America have welcomed the announcement that the Colombian Government and the FARC guerrilla group will sign a peace agreement on Monday 26 September to end over fifty years of conflict.

The Colombian Catholic Church and civil society have played a key role in supporting peace in Colombia, and in ensuring the participation of local communities and victims in the peace talks taking place since October 2012.

Monsignor Hector Fabio Henao, Director of Caritas Colombia, said:

“We celebrate with great joy the agreement ending the armed confrontation between the Colombian Government and the FARC. It is the first fundamental step towards building lasting peace, which will require strong government commitment and full participation and attentive civil society.”

“The Catholic Church has accompanied rural communities and human rights defenders closely on this long and painful path and will continue to support peace-building processes to ensure that the atrocities of the past are not repeated, that reconciliation is a reality, and human dignity of all those involved in the conflict is restored.”

The Peace Agreement brings to an end a conflict which has generated one of the worst humanitarian crises of the last few decades. Over 265,000 people have been killed, 46,000 disappeared and almost 7 million displaced.

CAFOD’s Head of Latin America, Clare Dixon, said:

“Today [26 September] is an historic day for Colombia, and a day for hope. We congratulate the efforts carried out to overcome the violence which, above all, has affected Colombian civilians, particularly those most marginalised and vulnerable, such as children, women, ethnic groups, peasant-farmers and other rural communities, as well as human rights organisations”.

Click below to hear our conversation with the Head of CAFOD Latin America, Clare Dixon

The Colombian Government must ensure truth, justice, reparation and guarantees of non-repetition for the victims of the Colombian conflict, urged the Catholic agencies in a statement released today.

The statement also drew attention to the issue of unequal land distribution, an underlying cause of the conflict. The Catholic agencies called on the Colombian Government to take actions to avoid further conflicts over land, including those generated by the lack of prior consultation with local communities regarding mining and energy projects promoted by the government and often operated by multinational companies.

It also called on the international community to play its part in the regulation of companies who are investing in land in Colombia, to avoid complicity in violating human rights and rights of communities.

The Peace Agreement between the Colombian Government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) guerrilla group must now be approved by Colombians in a referendum vote which will take place on 2 October 2016. 

“Colombian society must be aware and informed so that they are able to seize this historic opportunity on 2 October and make peace a reality,” said Monsignor Henao.

He added: “Even if the agreement is signed, there are still many challenges ahead for Colombia. We hope the government will also advance in agreements with the National Liberation Army (ELN) and other armed actors, including paramilitary groups”.

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