Colombian President Declares Ceasefire With FARC Over on October 31

By teleSUR

05 October 16

 

FARC-EP leaders respond by calling for the mobilization of the people in support of peace, while Colombians begin to blame "No" leader Uribe.

olombian President Juan Manuel Santos, to the apparent surprise of the FARC-EP, unilaterally announced Tuesday night during a televised address that "the ceasefire with the FARC only runs until Oct. 31," according to RT.

The FARC-EP head Timoleon Jimenez had previously said the rebels would continue the cease-fire and would abide by what they had agreed with the Colombian government, despite the fact that a slight majority of Colombians had voted "No" to the peace agreement.

On Monday, Santos sent the government chief of the peace delegation Humberto de la Calle and the Peace High Commissioner Sergio Jaramillo to discuss developments with the FARC-EP peace delegation in Havana, Cuba.

On his Twitter account, Jimenez asked after learning of the president's announcement, "And after that, the war continues?" He also called on the Colombian people to mobilize in support of peace, a call that appears to have been taken up by many sectors, as demonstrations for peace are being organized.

The number one trend on the social media Twitter was #MantainTheCeaseFire, where users wrote their reason to support the end of hostilities between bot sides.

Santos also said on Tuesday night that he "hope we can move forward to realize the necessary agreement to find a solution to this conflict."

According to an official statement by the ministry of defense, the cease-fire agreement that begun on Aug. 29 was effective until the day of the plebiscite, Oct. 2. The ministry indicated that due to the "No" win, it would only apply the cease-fire agreement until Oct. 31, adding that it could be extended if needed, to protect the safety of different sectors in Colombia.

"@JuanManSantos anuncia que el cese al Fuego con las @FARC_EPueblo va hasta el 31 de octubre" ¿De ahí para adelante continúa la guerra?

— Timoleón Jiménez (@Timochenko_FARC) October 5, 2016

"Juan Manuel Santos announces cease-fire with the FARC-EP will only run until Oct. 31. And after that, the war continues?"

In light of these surprising developments, Pastor Alape, a member of the High Command of the FARC-EP and peace negotiator, tweeted that all units should begin to move to secure positions to avoid provocations.

Santos and former president Alvaro Uribe are expected to meet on Wednesday, according to a tweet posted by Santos earlier Tuesday, in order to find a "constructive" way to peace.

Uribe led the "No" campaign against the peace accord between the rebels and the government and has been tied to paramilitary groups in the country who have threatened to kill FARC-EP leaders if they were to demobilize.

Santos will also be meeting with former head of state and "No" campaigner, Andres Pastrana.

Ivan Marquez, chief negotiator for the FARC-EP, questioned whether Uribe, who he called "the leader of chaos," would now be tinkering with the peace accord.

Es cierto "el país atraviesa una zona gris riesgosa, un limbo peligroso", pero estará peor si ponemos la paz en manos de Uribe y de Pastrana

— Iván Márquez (@IvanMarquezFARC) October 5, 2016

"It's true, 'the country is undergoing a risky gray zone, a dangerous limbo,' but it will be worse if we put peace in the hands of Uribe and Pastrana."