United Nations Verification Mission in Colombia - Report of the Secretary-General (S/2018/1159)

I. Introduction

1. The present report is submitted pursuant to Security Council resolution 2435 (2018) by which the Council renewed the mandate of the United Nations Verification Mission in Colombia and requested me to report on its activities every 90 days. The report covers the period from 26 September to 26 December 2018.

II. Major developments

1. During the reporting period, the President, Iván Duque Márquez completed the first 100 days of his government, having made repeated commitments to continue the peace process within the framework of a broader governing agenda of equity, legality and entrepreneurship. He also reiterated previously stated intentions to secure a national consensus on certain modifications to the Peace Agreement. On 12 October, the President visited one of the territorial areas for training and reintegration where former members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia — People’s Army (FARC-EP) are carrying out reintegration activities, in Pondores, La Guajira department. He noted that the visit was intended to affirm his Government’s intention to support the Peace Agreement and those committed to returning to civilian life. On 11 November, at the Paris Peace Forum, the President reiterated his support to advancing the peace process, noting that his Government had requested the international community to enhance the viability of reintegration projects, advance rural development and monitor Government efforts to consolidate peace in Colombia.

2. The bilateral bodies to promote peace implementation, comprising the Government and the People’s Alternative Revolutionary Force (FARC) – the National Reintegration Council, the Technical Committee on Security and Protection and the Commission for the Follow-up, Promotion and Verification of the Implementation of the Final Agreement – continued to meet regularly with the participation of the High Counsellor for Post-Conflict, Emilio José Archila; the High Commissioner for Peace, Miguel Ceballos; and the Minister of the Interior, Nancy Gutiérrez.

3. On 24 November, Colombians marked the two-year anniversary of the signing of the Final Peace Agreement. In a statement, I urged a concerted effort to consolidate the considerable gains of peace and reaffirmed the commitment of the United Nations to support such efforts. That message was underscored by the Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, Rosemary A. DiCarlo, during her visit to Colombia from 3 to 5 December.

4. On 17 December, the High Counsellor for Post-Conflict unveiled a plan entitled “Peace with legality”, the aim of which is to stabilize the areas most affected by conflict. It takes, as a point of departure, the 16 subregions and 170 municipalities where it is expected that the implementation of development programmes with a territorial focus will begin in 2019 under the coordination of Mr. Archila ’s office. The Government’s goal under the “Peace with legality” plan, according to Mr. Archila, “is to eradicate violence from the places that have endured it for decades. It is a phenomenon that has affected the whole country, which has threatened the entire society and has been linked to human rights violations, killings, drug trafficking and poverty. It is a matter of justice and of national security.”

5. The aim of the plan, which has a 15-year time horizon, is to better coordinate multiple initiatives within and beyond the Peace Agreement, including rural development, commitments to former FARC-EP members in the reintegration process, commitments to families under the voluntary substitution programme and, in particular, commitments to victims. It announces new initiatives to extend roads and electricity to rural areas as critical aspects of a stabilization effort. The aim is to coordinate not only multiple programmes but also multiple actors, including the Government, regional authorities, the international community, the private sector and affected communities.

6. Mr. Archila, in addition to his responsibility to take forward the socioeconomic reintegration and security of former FARC-EP members, has focused on comprehensive rural development, including development programmes with a territorial approach, a key feature of the Peace Agreement. To date, 13 of 16 such programmes across 170 municipalities have been finalized and are scheduled to begin implementation in 2019.