Colombian FARC leader ‘Guacho’ killed in raid

December 22, 2018

Colombian dissident rebel Walter Patricio Arizala has been killed in an operation by the country’s armed forces, President Ivan Duque said on Friday.

Arizala, who was part of the Oliver Sinisterra Front — a faction of the now-defunct Revolutionary Army Forces of Colombia (FARC) — was the subject of a monthslong manhunt after he kidnapped and shot dead three Ecuadorean media workers earlier this year.

Colombia and neighboring Ecuador had each offered $100,000 (€88,000) for information leading to his capture.

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Wanted dead or alive

The government deployed more than 3,000 troops to search for the 29-year-old “dead or alive.” His killing took place near the border with Ecuador, Duque said in a televised statement.

“The message is clear; we won’t take a step back in the defense of legality, life, honor and the property of Colombians,” the president said. “Many Colombian communities will sleep well because one of the most horrendous criminals the country has known is dead.”

Better known by his alias Guacho, the former FARC leader was one of the most-wanted fugitives among Colombia’s sprawling criminal underworld.

His small holdout faction of a few dozen guerrillas abandoned the country’s 2016 peace process and was accused of drug trafficking, extortion and homicide across Colombia’s volatile Narino state, which is home to the country’s largest harvest of illegal coca crops.

His death follows the slaying of another notorious dissident FARC leader, David Segura, in September.

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Slain journalists

In March, Arizala was behind the kidnapping of three newspaper workers from Ecuador’s El Comercio newspaper, who were later found slain, Colombian authorities have said.

The media crew was reporting on violence in the Esmeraldas region of the border when Arizala’s gang snatched them.

A proof-of-life photograph released shortly after their abduction showed them chained and padlocked by their necks. Arizala later shot them in the head.

Almost 1,800 ex-FARC fighters in 30 units nationwide have refused to keep to the terms of the country’s 2016 peace accord, and have continued their cocaine trafficking operations.

The FARC, which battled for more than a half-century before demobilizing, attacked military targets and civilian towns but generally allowed journalists to work freely, unless they went against the rebels’ interests.

Colombia’s long struggle for peace

Difficult path toward peace

The 2016 signing of the peace accord between the Colombian government and FARC rebels was a major, but not final, step towards ending the decades-long conflict. The deal remains a controversial topic in the country and took center stage during the presidential election.

Colombia’s long struggle for peace

Land owners vs. farmers

The conflict’s origins date to the 1920s and a struggle over land ownership, which claimed thousands of lives. The 1948 murder of Jorge Eliecer Gaitan (photo), a liberal politician, threw the country into deep crisis. A result was the formation of a number of resistance groups; the Colombian army launched a campaign against “communist farmers.”

Colombia’s long struggle for peace

FARC and ELN

The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and the National Liberation Army (ELN) were founded in 1964. The former wanted to break up the monopoly of land ownership, whereas the ELN formed out of a radical student movement and ideas of liberation theologians such as Camilo Torres (photo). The Colombian government fought both groups with the support the United States.

Colombia’s long struggle for peace

Paramilitary groups

The conflict deepened in the 1980s with the introduction of right-wing paramilitary groups in the service of the landowners against FARC. Both sides were closely linked to drug cartels. Four presidential candidates and countless left-wing politicians were murdered by paramilitaries between 1986 and 1990.

Colombia’s long struggle for peace

Ingrid Betancourt kidnapped

In February 2002, the government cut off peace negotiations with FARC after guerrillas hijacked a domestic flight. Days later, the rebels struck again, kidnapping presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt. Alvaro Uribe went on to win the election that May and escalated military operations against FARC, ruling out further negotiations. He was re-elected in 2007. Betancourt was released in 2008.

Colombia’s long struggle for peace

Peace talks begin

Juan Manuel Santos was elected president in 2010. Two years later, a law concerning compensation for victims of violence and the return of land came into effect. Peace talks between the government (photo) and FARC officially began that November.

Colombia’s long struggle for peace

Ceasefire

At midnight on August 29, 2016, the permanent ceasefire came into force. “A new chapter in Colombia’s history begins on August 29,” Santos wrote on Twitter. “We have silenced the weapons. The war with FARC is over!”

Colombia’s long struggle for peace

Peace deal with FARC

On September 26, 2016, President Santos and FARC leader Rodrigo Londono, a.k.a. Timochenko, signed the peace treaty, ending the 52-year-old conflict. The signing took place in Cartagena and was attended by 2,500 people.

Colombia’s long struggle for peace

Setback

Distrust in FARC manifested itself in a pre-referendum campaign against the peace treaty, led by the conservative ex-president Alvaro Uribe. To the surprise of many observers, a thin majority of Colombians voted to reject the deal on October 2, 2016.

Colombia’s long struggle for peace

Peace Prize for Santos

The international community threw its support behind the treaty’s supporters. Just five days after it was rejected in a referendum, Santos was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. The ceremony took place in Oslo in December 2016.

Colombia’s long struggle for peace

Parliamentary ratification

Colombia’s parliament ratified the peace treaty on November 30, 2016, following a list of changes to the deal’s original language.

Colombia’s long struggle for peace

Disarmament

FARC rebels gave up their weapons in three phases. On June 27, 2017, at the end of the UN-controlled disarmament process, Santos wrote: “For me and all Colombians, today is a special day. It’s a day when weapons were exchanged for words.”

Colombia’s long struggle for peace

The new FARC

The now disarmed, former rebel group chose to renew itself as a political party and disavow violence during a convention on August 27, 2017. The guerrilla’s founder, Rodrigo Londono (photo), was elected the new party’s head. He was unable to run for president, however, due to his poor health.

Colombia’s long struggle for peace

FARC at the polls

For the first time since the end of the armed conflict, FARC put up its members as candidates in the parliamentary election, which took place on March 11, 2018. The party received just 50,000 votes, but secured five seats in the senate and lower house of parliament, respectively, as guaranteed by the peace treaty. The conservative party of former President Uribe won the election.

Author: Emilia Rojas Sasse