Columbians Supports FARC Peace Deal

By mdkg1116

Oct 14, 2016 06:00 AM EDT

A huge crowd have rallied in cities across Colombia their purpose is to demand a peace deal between the government and not to scuttle the rebel leftists.

The demonstration on Wednesday, manifested the people's support for it was its second time in a week that Colombians took the streets. They supported the accord signed last month with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and which is by now on the cliff after being shocked of a referendum defeat for the deal.

Al Jazeera's Alessandro Rampietti, from the capital Bogota, reported that he had seen hundreds of representatives of indigenous groups, Afro-Colombians and other groups of minorities who walked through demanding peace.

The people marched along with students, victims of the conflict and ordinary families. Victims of the long conflict which ran for decades carried photos of their dead love ones were greeted by their well-wishers who handled white flowers which peace is being symbolized.

The victims are in the state of uncertainty, as if they are in a demilitarized zone. They should be accord now, told Diana Gomez, an activist told the Associated Press. She said that his father was killed ten years ago. In addition, Gomez stressed out that her father's case remained unsolved, emphasizing that it was one of the many cases of a conflict which was ran for 52 years. This conflict took 220,000 lives of people and had left a scar of almost 8 million displaced.

The winner of this year's Nobel Peace prize, president Juan Manuel Santos talked with the opposition and FARC to make trying to negotiate adjustments to the accord following its restricted rejection in a referendum six days after it was signed with the presence of world leaders.

However it is not vivid that he can save the deal as foes push for stiffer penalties for rebel leaders and fighters.

On September 26, under the governing terms of the agreement which was signed that day, leaders of FARC would be able to serve in Congress, granted with ten seats. While fighters who confessed their crimes would be spared in jail instead of ordering them to perform community development work in areas absolutely affected by the conflict.

On Wednesday, former president Alvaro Uribe who led the campaign against the peace deal commented that it was not a question of cosmetic changes, after he delivered to the government officials a list of proposals that he said would strengthen and provide broader support for the accord.

 "In a country of institutions like Colombia, transitional justice can't consist of failing to punish those responsible for atrocious crimes" said Uribe.

Timoleon Jimenez, the FARC leader who is known by his nom de guerre Timochenko, tied to put on a brave face on Wednesday saying that the group is open to make adjustments even if it is not willing to start negotiations to scratch again. He personally think that it may have been good that the referendum loss happened in a rare, one hour interview with Caracol Radio.

"It allows us to clear up many doubts and especially commit the important segment of the Colombian society that didn't vote, more than 63 percent, to take an interest in this history-making event.", he added.

On the Plaza Bolivar's march adjacent to congress and presidential palace, a rally larger than last week appeared. A potential sign of how politically apathetic Colombians have been disturbed into action by fading prospects for peace.

"The great majority of people have asked me to find a solution soon because uncertainty is the enemy," Santos said in televised address.

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