Buenos Aires, Mar 11 (Prensa Latina) Had it not been for Comandante (Hugo) Chavez, the FARC would have never have put its trust in a dialogue with the extreme right-wing government of Juan Manuel Santos, said the leader of that insurgent force today, Jesus Santrich.
More images in: Photos PL Venezuela’s role in the talks currently underway in Havana between the FARC-EP (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People’s Army) and the Colombian government “has been fundamental,” he emphasized.
Santrich, a member of the guerrilla force’s General Staff, also emphasized Cuba’s participation in the process, in an interview with Argentina’s Pagina 12, where he stressed that “it is something that gives us great confidence” especially considering that many governments throughout the continent have backed the peace talks.
Colombia is at the forefront of an entire neocolonial process that is being drafted at the White House, charged the guerrilla leader, who pointed out that militarization in that South American country is on the rise.
In less than two decades the resources directed to that war have doubled, said Santrich, adding that the FARC has always considered a bilateral ceasefire an essential component in generating a better environment for the talks.
“The government has not wanted to do it. We have proven our contribution to peace, through the two month long unilateral ceasefire we declared. Until January 20, we were operating under a unilateral ceasefire,” he said.
In another part of the interview, Santrich referred to the broad support the FARC-EP enjoys within the spectrum of popular organizations, as well as rural areas, where the population is more segregated and more oppressed.
“We view things with a great deal of confidence in our own forces, and are now trying to seek a peaceful resolution. But if the government definitively closes the door, we are internally strong, both by conviction and morally, as well as in the plans to carry the resistance struggle forward,” he stressed.
He also pointed out that although the Colombian guerrilla force has received severe blows, “we have delivered them as well,” as it fights the top level technological warfare employed by Colombia with the support of the United States, Israel and England.
“That is the enemy we are dealing with and we are ready and waiting, whether for a bilateral ceasefire, or in the attempt to continue seeking opportunities for peace in the middle of the confrontation. This has been demonstrated,” he insisted.
Santrich also said that the crisis of capitalism is irreversible and called for extending resistance in all its forms of expression.
That crisis is producing a global insurgency that is not necessarily armed, and definitively speaking, the extensive crisis of capitalism will drive itself off the precipice, he