Peace process in Colombia

The European Union reaffirms its support for the peace process in Colombia. The Union supports the efforts of the parties to reach a negotiated solution to the deep-rooted conflicts in Colombia and notes that some progress has been made in the peace negotiations with the FARC and the ELN. However, lately we are witnessing an unfortunate slowdown of the process. The EU, together with other international actors, wants the peace process to be irreversible. The Union therefore wants to renew the EU appeal to the FARC to take some concrete far- reaching steps to show its genuine commitment to the peace process. The EU also calls on the ELN to resume the dialogue with the Government and to demonstrate its will to contribute to the peace process.

Against this background, the European Union is ready to step up its support for the peace process in Colombia. The EU is in a position to commit a total of 335 M Euro in a coordinated effort of the European commission and the Member States. The Commission's package of 105 M Euro over six years is a substantial part of this effort, and Members States foresee contributions of approximately 230 M Euro over the next three years.

The Union welcomes the stated objective of President Pastrana to make the peace process a policy of the state, and wishes to express its hope that further concrete measures by the Government will now be seen in this respect. The EU also calls on the Common Front for Peace, created last October with the objective of supporting the peace efforts as a state policy, and other actors to join forces in support of this objective.

The Union will formulate its development co-operation to further promote the peace process, including the peace negotiation processes and their progress. The European Union believes that support to the peace process should be developed in such a way that it helps the negotiating parties and other actors in Colombia, including civil society, to continue the peace negotiation process and other peace efforts. The recent visits by high level representatives of the Union are expressions of this commitment.

An appropriate way to create new incentives for the parties, and other actors in the peace process, is to support relevant partial or global agreements between the negotiating parties. So far, there are two especially interesting partial or initial agreements, one in each sub-process, which should be supported. In the Government-ELN process the draft agreement concerning a Meeting Zone for the ELN (as of January 15, 2001), and in the Government-FARC process the agreement of Los Pozos (as of February 8, 2001).

The European Union welcomes the decision, recently expanded by the negotiating parties, to involve the international community in facilitating and verifying the peace processes. The Union supports the decisions by individual member states, invited by the negotiating parties, to participate more directly in the peace process. The Union also strongly supports the role and efforts of the Special Adviser of the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Mr. Jan Egeland.

The European Union reiterates its deep concern about the grave and persistent abuses of international humanitarian law, mainly by the guerrillas and the paramilitary groups. The Union strongly believes that respect for human rights and international humanitarian law is a necessary requisite for advancement of the peace process and a basis for expanded EU support. The EU calls on all parties to the conflict to put an end to violence, to respect human rights and comply with international humanitarian law, reiterating that these issues are non-negotiable.

The EU continues to strongly condemn atrocities, violations of international humanitarian law and human rights abuses committed by paramilitary groups and the guerrillas. The European Union reiterates its call on all armed groups holding hostages, including the ELN and the FARC, to release them immediately, and to terminate this unacceptable practice.

The Union strongly believes that partial or global human rights and humanitarian agreements between the parties to the conflict, including concrete mechanisms of international verification would be important steps forward towards peace. Such agreements are necessary steps in order to contribute to decreased levels of violence, a better atmosphere for negotiations and increased possibilities for a process with broad participation.

The Union also notes the ongoing efforts of the Colombian Government to counteract paramilitary activities and urges it to step up these efforts. The Union calls upon the Government of Colombia to continue its efforts to effectively combat paramilitarism and to take concrete action to dismantle these groups by arresting, prosecuting and punishing all those involved in such activities. In this context the EU further urges the Government of Colombia to take prompt action when receiving early warnings in order to prevent massacres and other crimes from being committed.

The internal armed conflict and the production of and trade in illegal drugs are interlinked. The EU is determined to continue to condemn and to combat, on the basis of the principle of shared responsibility, the production and trafficking of illegal drugs. It is necessary that all parties involve themselves in concerted efforts to find viable alternatives to making a living on drugs. Production and trade in drugs can never be justified with economic arguments and concern for poverty.

Fostering conditions for economic and social development in a conflict situation requires new thinking and more attention than has previously been given. A challenge for the Colombian government as well as the European Union, the UN system and other countries and partners is to find alternative measures to combat narcotics.

The Union is aware of the negative impact of both the growth of illegal crops and of some of the methods used to counteract them. The Union encourages Colombian initiatives related to independent international monitoring of aerial spraying on the basis of procedures established by the Colombian authorities. It is the view of the Union that manual eradication is an effective means to combat illicit crop production and allow its substitution, and, therefore promote gainful employment. The Union supports national policies to safeguard biodiversity and protect the environment.

The European Union emphasizes the importance of development of the peace process in a direction, which enables broad participation of different sectors of the Colombian society. Broad-based ownership of the peace process and deepening of democracy in the Colombian society is a precondition for a sustainable development towards peace and an end to the production and trade in narcotics. The extreme level of violence in Colombia, indiscriminately affecting the civilian population, is in itself an important obstacle to fruitful negotiations. It also affects the possibilities of a broad and constructive participation by the different sectors of society in the peace process.

It is necessary to break the psychology and habit of violence and antagonism in Colombia. Our common challenge is to build confidence, not least among the Colombian population, in a vision of peace and development.

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