Indepaz: Colombia Needs to Recognize the Scope of Paramilitaries
Indepaz: Colombia Needs to Recognize the Scope of Paramilitaries
Published 26 December 2015 (9 hours 58 minutes ago)
Director of Colombia's Indepaz says more needs to be done to stop neoparamilitary groups in the country and the government bodies coopted by them.
The Colombian government needs to recognize the magnitude of paramilitary groups that continue to operate and control large swaths of territory in the country if it is to achieve peace, according to observers of the country's peace process.
Camilo Gonzalez, director of the Institute of Peace and Development Studies (Indepaz) is the latest person to add his voice to the discussion.
In an interview with Colombia's El Espectador newspaper Friday, Gonzalez said these groups are not going to disappear overnight, but the government could “take immediate action and, above all, define action plans showing a decision and a real chance to contain, neutralize and dismantle these groups.”
Paramilitaries — also known as death squads — have long been at the heart of the violence in Colombia, and have been found guilty of numerous human rights violations. These groups were technically demobilized in 2005 under an agreement with then President Alvaro Uribe. However, local observers and human rights organizations say successor groups continue to exist.
More:
http://www.telesurtv.net/english/news/Indepaz-Colombia-Needs-to-Recognize-the-Scope-of-Paramilitaries-20151226-0003.html
