In dialogue with Blu Radio, Senator Iván Cepeda, member of the Government’s peace negotiating team with the ELN, referred to how the dialogue table is progressing and the obstacles that have arisen with the regional table in Nariño with the southern border commands who say they do not feel represented by ‘Antonio García’ and ‘Pablo Beltrán’.
This following the exclusive interview that Blu Radio did with alias ‘HH’ or ‘Samuel’, commander of the southern border commands and who insist that they do not feel represented by Coce, ELN Central Command and directly mention alias ‘Pablo Beltrán’ and alias ‘Antonio García’.
“I think we should enter on foot together, that all the qualifiers that have been made about the structure, “What we represent is a lie, we all our lives, and even in the last days of our lives we are always elenos and we will always be insurgents,” he noted.
The executive knows that there are difficulties in how to carry out the negotiation with the ELN,
partly because it has not been defined whether the southern border commandos should be recognized as a subversive group different from Coce.
“It is true that there are difficulties in Nariño, there is a territorial peace process led by the governor of that department and a group appears that wants to enter into a peace process. The group wants to be recognized and, therefore, we Government delegation have asked to the president to clarify that this group does not belong to the ELN in order to advance any kind of treatment of their situation, since it is not possible to carry out a double negotiation or have two negotiating tables with the ELN”, he added.
Regarding the letter sent last Saturday, April 27, by the Government’s peace delegation to President Gustavo Petro, asking for clarity on how to conduct the negotiation, they continue without being notified by the executive. “The process is advancing, the negotiating team acts in a certain way, we are waiting for the president to say who is the head of peace policy in the Colombian State.”
Cepeda assured that at the moment what is clear is that the dialogues with the Coce and the next meeting in Venezuela will continue. “The process with the ELN has advanced like no other, in the past of the negotiations with this insurgent group, “It has reached 26 agreements and on May 20 there will be a meeting in Caracas to close the first point on the agenda.”
