Farc what do they want

Ex-combatants and critics of the government say Duque has not done enough to protect them. The Duque government inherited the peace process when it came into power in and has long voiced skepticism of it, cutting funding to its transitional justice mechanism earlier this year. His tenure from to was marked with brutal military blows against the Farc, which critics say they came with little concern for human rights and collateral damage to civilians.

Security forces estimate that they command up to 2, soldiers, according to Reuters. Peace talks between the ELN and the government, collapsed in February after a rebel carbomb killed 22 people. Once overshadowed by Farc, the ELN has grown steadily stronger since the peace deal, extending its reach far into neighbouring Venezuela.

Juan Manuel Santos, the president who negotiated the deal and won the Nobel peace prize for his efforts, called on his successor to stick to the process. Several armed conflicts continue in Colombia.

There is wide agreement that the fighting between the government and the guerrillas of the National Liberation Army ELN , created in the s, amounts to a non-international armed conflict. The AGC emerged in large part from a flawed paramilitary demobilization in the s. The EPL is a holdout from a guerrilla group with the same name that partly demobilized in the s.

Members of these groups include former FARC fighters who never demobilized, others who participated in the demobilization process but returned to arms, and new recruits. Currently, 25 FARC dissident groups operate throughout the country, according to a survey by Conflict Responses, a Colombian think tank.

Many of them engage in fighting with government forces, and are responsible for abuses, including killing civilians, forced displacement, and threatening violence to control daily life in numerous parts of the country. Yet, the groups vary significantly in size. The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights considers that these groups do not fulfill the intensity and organization requirements to be parties to a conflict with government forces.

In contrast, the government has taken the position , since , that all FARC dissident groups are parties to a conflict with its forces and subject to rules of engagement under IHL. The government has not clearly explained its conclusion about these groups. Under international law, the determination as to whether a situation of violence amounts to an armed conflict is an objective one—not to be determined by the relevant government. When it comes to FARC dissident groups, they may be considered parties to a conflict in three ways:.

Indeed, former units of the Eastern Bloc appear to be highly organized and often engage in fighting with government forces. However, the same is not true for other FARC dissident groups.

Similarly, the Second Marquetalia appears to have rarely engaged in fighting with government forces, though it has engaged in fighting with other FARC dissident groups. International case law has built on the Tadic test when determining whether different armed groups form a single party to the armed conflict. It appears inaccurate to treat all FARC dissident groups as a single group. Indeed, many FARC dissident groups operate independently.

At the same time, there is some evidence that a subset of FARC dissident groups that fail to fulfill in and of themselves the organization and hostility requirements have genuine links among themselves that may create a single group that may satisfy the requirements under IHL option 2.

In , Alfonso Cano, who took over from Manuel Marulanda, was also killed in a bombing raid. The number of active fighters also diminished from its estimated high of 20, to around 7, after thousands of guerrilla fighters were demobilised or killed. The Farc themselves insist that they wanted peace all along but that the conditions were not right before.

Colombia guerrillas prepare finally for peace. Colombian voices on peace process. What is at stake in the Colombian peace process? Image source, Getty Images. The Farc have been fighting one of the longest-running insurgencies in the world. Who are the Farc? Image source, Reuters. Manuel "Sureshot" Marulanda centre was the main leader of the Farc until his death in How many Farc fighters are there? At their height, the Farc was estimated to have some 20, active fighters.

How are they organised? Most of the members of the Farc come from rural areas of Colombia. Why did they take up arms? While they were not very well armed when they were first founded, the Farc have acquired some heavy weapons over the decades.

Was Colombia peaceful before the Farc? Colombia had suffered from decades of violence even before the Farc were founded. Who joined the Farc? The Farc recruits women as well as men and have fighters of all ages, including children.

Who do they fight? General Luis Mendieta in uniform was held captive by the Farc for 14 years. How do they finance themselves?

Image source, AFP.