Colombia: The EU Withdraws the FARC from its List of Terrorist Groups
Colombia: The EU Withdraws the FARC from its List of Terrorist Groups
Last Monday, the Foreign Affairs Ministers of the European Union (EU) agreed to definitively withdraw the Farc (former Revolutionary Armed Forces and present Common Revolutionary Alternative Force) from its list of terrorist groups. According to community sources which informed Efe, this was undertaken during a Council meeting in Brussels.
The political decision had already been taken by ambassadors of the Twenty Eight and the ministers ratified it without any debate during last Monday meeting.
The EU had already “suspended the Farc from its list of terrorist group since 26th September, 2016 in order to encourage the process of peace in Colombia.
The Farc were included in that list on 9th Setember, 2001. The suspension did permit to temporarily take aside the sanctions resulting from being included in that list. They involve asset freeze or the prohibition to have funds available.
The EU list regarding terrorism includes persons or groups acting within or without the Union territory and is regularly checked by the Council (an institution where governments of the member states are represented), at least, every six months.
Those appearing in said list may be subject to fund or financial assets freeze in the EU or to restrictive measures in relation with police and judicial cooperation.
Last week, after being noticed of EU intentions to take such measure, Rodrigo Rivera, the Peace Commissioner, said that “it is good news that reveals the progress we are getting on this peace process”.
The United States and Canada continue considering the Farc as a terrorist organization. “We belive it is going to be a consequence process with that kind of developments, said Rivera.
Santos “celebrates”
The President Juan Manuel Santos celebrated the “important progress” by the European Union (EU) at the time of withdrawing the Farc from its terrorist organization.
“Today the European Union moved forward to another important step in the way leading to reconciliation of Colombian people and decided to withdraw the Farc from the terrorist list”, he remarked during a lecure to his honor in the Assembly of the Portuguese Republic in Lisboa.
Santos, who concluded a visit to Portugal last Tuesday, remarked the decision taken last Monday by the Foreign Affairs Ministers of the European Union to definitively set aside the Farc from the list of terrorists.
Upon his arrival in the country, the President will meet the UNO Assistant General Secretary for Politics Issues, Jeffrey Feltman, who is to start an official two-day visit to Colombia next Tuesday (the second one for him). His aim is to know the progress of the peace agreement and of the United Nations Verification Mission. The American officer will also meet some representatives of the Farc party.
