Colombia's bishops hail peace accord with FARC rebels

June 24, 2016

The Catholic bishops of Colombia have welcomed the government's peace accord with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) as "a historic event."

Signed on June 23 after four years of negotiations, the accord calls for a mutual ceasefire, the surrender of FARC weapons, and implementation monitored by the UN Security Council. The Colombian bishops, in their statement, said that the agreement should be "the first step to building peace, long awaited by Colombians, with the guarantee of human rights and the promotion of justice in every corner of the country." 

The Catholic Church, the bishops said, "was on the side of the victims for the entire period of the war." The Church will continue to serve the cause of peace and the promotion of human rights, they said. 

 

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Further information:

• The Bishops: "A historic event, the first step to building peace" (Fides)