- Title: Colombia's FARC rebels to debut political party on Sept. 1
- Date: 24th July 2017
- Summary: MESETAS, COLOMBIA (RECENT) (REUTERS) FARC MEMBERS WALKING ALONG DIRT ROAD TO HANDOVER WEAPONS FARC MEMBERS WEARING T-SHIRTS ASSOCIATED WITH PEACE MOVEMENT WALKING MORE OF FARC MEMBERS WALKING TOWARDS WEAPONS HANDOVER FARC MEMBER HOLDING UP BANNER FOR VICTIMS OF WAR GENERAL VIEW OF SITE FOR WEAPONS HANDOVER FARC MEMBERS AT SITE GENERAL VIEW OF FARC MEMBERS ASSEMBLED AT SITE GENERAL VIEW OF WEAPONS HANDOVER SITE IN RURAL MOUNTAINOUS AREA
- Embargoed: 7th August 2017 21:52
- Keywords: political party Marxist rebel group new party announcement Timochenko FARC Juan Manuel Santos Colombia peace deal
- Location: BOGOTA, MESETAS, COLOMBIA
- City: BOGOTA, MESETAS, COLOMBIA
- Country: Colombia
- Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace
- Reuters ID: LVA0036R2W18J
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Colombia's Marxist FARC rebel group will officially launch its new political party on September 1, part of a peace deal with the government under which former guerrilla fighters will serve in congress.
The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) fought the government for more than half a century, but handed in its weapons as part of a deal negotiated during more than four years of talks in Cuba.
The accord allows the FARC ten unelected seats in Congress through 2026 and grants amnesty to the majority of ex-fighters. Rebels convicted by special courts of human rights violations will avoid traditional prison sentences, instead performing reparations work such as removing landmines.
The group has not yet announced which of its members will fill the congressional seats or the new party's name, but will hold meetings before the launch to fine-tune its policy proposals, according to reports from the group. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2017. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: None