Colombia's FARC Opens Congress to Become Political Party

By teleSUR

27 August 17

The FARC guerrilla group, now incorporated into civilian life, will set the foundation for its future in politics.

he FARC has begun its Congress in Colombia to become a political party, after completing the disarmament plan, as part of the peace agreement to end more than five decades of internal conflict.

The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia will begin a week-long conference ending Sept. 1 with a massive public event in Bolivar Square in the historic center of Bogota.

The FARC has changed its name tentatively to the "Revolutionary Alternative Force of Colombia," maintaining the acronym that has identified the group throughout its history.

"We don't want to break ties with our past. We have been and will continue to be a revolutionary organization," Ivan Marquez, a leader of the FARC said last week.

A thousand members will attend the event to be held at the Gonzalo Jimenez de Quesada Convention Center in Bogota and will be joined by about 200 international guests and 400 journalists.

The Congress is expected to be led by Rodrigo Londoño, also known as Timochenko, who reportedly arrived a week ago from Cuba, where he had undergone medical treatment.

The Congress will decide the final name of the party and will define the political program and road map it will follow.

Two weeks ago, the United Nation's first monitoring mission as part of the Colombian peace process ended its term with the removal of the last container of arms from FARC demobilization camps.

According to the U.N., 900,000 cartridges had been destroyed in 25 of the 26 military zones.

With the FARC demobilized and disarmed after 52 years of armed struggle, its approximately 7,000 guerrillas and 4,000 militia members will now continue their reintegration process, which includes educational and work programs.

The FARC has also announced plans to seek a 2018 election alliance with the Colombian Communist Party, less than a year before the country's presidential election.

Meanwhile, Felix Antonio Muñoz Lascarro, known as Pastor Alape, a negotiator for the FARC said that the group has "been exhaustive in the presentation of the information" in relation to its assets that it has registered. According to the documentation delivered, the registered assets amount to US$330 million, which includes real estate, Colombian pesos, U.S. dollars, weapons, cattle and horses, gold, among other valuable items.