Colombian President Gustavo Petro announced this Saturday (08/20/2022) that the arrest and extradition orders against the guerrilla negotiators of the National Liberation Army (ELN) based in Cuba were lifted.
“By a decree signed yesterday, I have authorized to reintroduce the protocols, re-authorize negotiators, allow them to reconnect to their organisation, suspend arrest warrants against these negotiators, suspend extradition orders for these negotiators so that they can enter into dialogue with the ELN be able to record. ‘ he said at the end of a security council held in San Pablo, a town in the department of Bolívar (north).
Also, Petro advocated “trying to build the road” that should be “fast” so that “this organization will stop being an insurgent guerrilla in Colombia.”
“I invite those who form the so-called self-defense groups to follow a similar path and bring peace to this region together,” added the President.
The Colombian government’s negotiations with the ELN began in Quito in 2017 during the tenure of Juan Manuel Santos and were moved to Havana in 2018, where the main guerrilla leaders are still present.
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