Attachments
I. Introduction
1. The present report is submitted pursuant to Security Council resolution 2704 (2023), by which the Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Verification Mission in Colombia, and resolution 2366 (2017), in which the Council requested the Secretary-General to report on the implementation of the mandate of the Mission every 90 days. The report covers the period from 27 March to 26 June 2024.
II. Major developments
2. During the reporting period there were noteworthy efforts to enhance coordination and coherence among entities involved in the implementation of the Final Agreement for Ending the Conflict and Building a Stable and Lasting Peace. At the same time, different sectors were increasingly vocal in expressing divergent views regarding peace implementation and Government social policies, underscoring a need to seek consensus and join efforts to overcome persisting challenges to the consolidation of peace.
3. On 14 May, during a judicial swearing-in ceremony, the President of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, publicly reaffirmed the duty of the State to fulfil its obligation to implement the Final Agreement signed in 2016. The President stressed that the responsibility for implementing the Final Agreement lies not only with the Executive branch, but with the entire State, arguing that there had been insufficient commitment in this regard. He listed three aspects of the process that required special attention, namely the implementation of the comprehensive rural reform, the transformation of conflict-affected territories and determining the truth concerning events that unfolded during the conflict. He affirmed his intention to bring this message to the Security Council. Separately, following a number of comments by the President on the issue, there was a strong domestic debate regarding whether the Final Agreement calls for the holding of a constituent assembly.
4. For the first time since the signing of the Final Agreement, the parties initiated a process in March to review the Framework Plan for Implementation of the Final Agreement within the Commission for the Follow-Up, Promotion and Verification of the Final Agreement. The Plan constitutes a strategic instrument for planning, setting goals and indicators, promoting policy recommendations and defining the necessary measures for implementation in the years to come. The review of the Plan requires the involvement of Government institutions and presents a unique opportunity to strengthen their coordination around the implementation of the Final Agreement.
5. To accelerate implementation of the Final Agreement, the National Planning Department and the Unit for Implementation of the Final Agreement – tasked with leading inter-institutional coordination – developed a rapid response plan to meet the goals set forth in the Final Agreement. In addition, the National Planning Department and the Office of the Counsellor Commissioner for Peace (formerly the High Commissioner for Peace) worked on fostering coordinated inter-institutional interventions in prioritized regions.
6. Tensions related to the work of the Special Jurisdiction for Peace persisted. Representatives of the Comunes party continued to state that the Special Jurisdiction for Peace, after seven years of activity, was deviating from its envisioned goals of providing prompt justice for victims and legal certainty for individuals under its authority. On 7 June, Comunes members of Congress held a public hearing at the Senate, during which they reiterated concerns about former combatants’ lack of legal certainty and described how these challenges were affecting the day-to-day lives of individuals under the authority of the Special Jurisdiction for Peace. The Special Jurisdiction for Peace has expressed its openness to dialogue. However, it stipulated that some aspects pertaining to those goals are connected to ongoing judicial processes and called for respect for its autonomy and independence. The Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Colombia and Head of the United Nations Verification Mission in Colombia, Carlos Ruiz Massieu, and the guarantor countries, Cuba and Norway, maintained close communications with all concerned actors with a view to helping them overcome the identified obstacles through dialogue, within the framework established by the Final Agreement.
7. The Special Jurisdiction for Peace continued to move towards the issuance of its first sentences, including an important ruling within Case 01 (on hostage-taking, other severe deprivations of liberty and concurrent crimes committed by FARC-EP). The ruling ratified the indictment for war crimes and crimes against humanity that was made during the investigative phase against the seven former members of the Secretariat of the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia-Ejército del Pueblo (FARC-EP). A substantive and procedural challenge to the ruling was lodged by the indictees. While the indictees had previously acknowledged their responsibility for events that took place during the conflict, they maintain differences regarding the legal definition by the Special Jurisdiction for Peace of some actions attributed to them. The next stage towards the issuance of the restorative sentences will be determined by the outcome of the appeal.
8. The Government continued six separate negotiation processes with illegal armed groups, with varying degrees of progress and challenges. During the reporting period, President Petro publicly acknowledged the complexities of pursuing total peace.
9. On 25 May, the peace dialogues between the Government and the Ejército de Liberación Nacional (ELN) reached an important milestone when the parties signed an agreement on the participation of society in peacebuilding, which is the first item on the talks agenda. The national bilateral ceasefire – the longest-lasting between the two parties – has been broadly observed. The monitoring and verification mechanism helped to prevent armed clashes on 18 occasions by facilitating the separation of forces between the two sides. However, the negotiations have recently faced severe challenges. Disputes between the parties persisted in the Nariño Department, where the Government continued to engage bilaterally with an ELN Front (Comuneros del Sur), within the framework of a regional peace initiative. In a statement issued on 6 May, ELN announced, to broad criticism, that it would lift its suspension of kidnappings for ransom, to which it had committed during the fifth round of talks in January 2024.
10. The dialogue process between the Government and the group referred to as the Estado Mayor Central Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia-Ejército del Pueblo (EMC FARC-EP) also faced important challenges, with some fronts opting out of the process. This occurred mostly in Cauca, Nariño and Valle del Cauca Departments. The Government had unilaterally lifted the ceasefire on 20 March in those Departments, following acts of violence exerted by the group towards the civilian population, in particular Indigenous Peoples. This generated debate regarding the fronts’ core objectives about their participation in the peace process. The region, and Cauca Department in particular, suffered a rise in violent clashes, including several attacks by EMC FARC-EP against public security forces.
11. At the ongoing negotiations between the Government and EMC FARC-EP, there was progress in discussions focusing on initiatives for territorial transformations to promote development in the most affected areas, initially in Caquetá, Guaviare, Meta and Norte de Santander Departments, including through initial meetings with community representatives in these areas. The processes are aimed at identifying land where formal tenure could promote the development of social infrastructure, such as health and education centres.
12. During the reporting period, the oversight, monitoring and verification mechanism continued functioning as agreed between the parties in the areas where the ceasefire remained in place, focusing on strengthening dialogue to prevent confrontations. Between February and May, at least 22 people held hostage by EMC FARC-EP were released The mechanism also reported that coordinated work – at the national level and through its five regional and local branches – prevented nine instances of potential armed clashes between the parties.
13. The Government and the group known as Segunda Marquetalia started formal peace dialogues in Caracas, on 24 June. In April, upon the request of the Government, the Office of the Attorney General temporarily suspended the arrest warrants against nine members of Segunda Marquetalia whose appointment by the group as negotiators in forthcoming talks with the Government was recognized by the President.
14. During the reporting period, large protests for and against Governmentproposed reforms mobilized thousands of citizens into the streets, reflecting divisions within Colombian society. The demonstrations were largely peaceful. President Petro has called for a national pact in support of his proposed reforms.
15. Congress continued to discuss draft bills related to the implementation of the Final Agreement. In May, it approved a bill amending the 2011 Victims and Land Restitution Act. The bill, which is now to be endorsed by the President, contains judicial, administrative and budgetary measures for the benefit of the country’s more than 9 million registered victims. The bill aims to strengthen measures, including assistance and integral reparation to victims. In June, Congress passed a bill incorporating the Agrarian Jurisdiction into the Colombian judicial framework and defining its structure. It will now undergo constitutional review. However, another bill regulating the operational and procedural aspects of the Jurisdiction was not discussed during the reporting period and was not included in the legislative calendar. The establishment of the first tribunal and five specialized courts was therefore postponed.