FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Cross-party Belfast delegation and ANC meet with FARC peace negotiators
23 October 2015, Havana
An international peace delegation including senior ANC representatives and actors involved in the Good Friday Agreement are in Havana, Cuba to meet with negotiators in the Colombian peace talks. The delegation will be meeting with the FARC’s most senior negotiators in order to share their experiences and offer continued support for the peace process as it enters its crucial final stages.
The three-day visit which begins today is being organised by the London based NGO Justice for Colombia and is part of a three year initiative to provide international support and share experiences with both the Colombian government and the FARC peace negotiators. The group includes the ANC’s Ebrahim Ebrahim and Mohammed Bhabha. It will be the first time representatives of the ANC meet with them. The delegation also includes politicians from different parties in Northern Ireland – Paul Maskey MP, Sinn Fein, Mark Durkan MP, SDLP, Jeffrey Donaldson MP, DUP, as well as the Reverend Harold Good, who has received international acclaim for his role in the Good Friday Agreement.
The visit follows a three day visit also organised by Justice for Colombia which brought together lawyers from Britain and Ireland to meet with lawyers of the Legal Negotiating team advising the FARC.
Mariela Kohon, the Director of Justice for Colombia said:
“We know how important international support was for the peace process that brought an end to the conflict in Northern Ireland, so Justice for Colombia has been building international initiatives that can provide both moral and practical support to the Colombian peace talks. Hundreds of thousands have been killed by the war in Colombia and we are now closer than ever to a peace deal. We hope that this delegation, with its huge wealth of experience, will continue to bring peace closer to becoming a reality.”
Ends
For further information please contact Mariela Kohon at mariela@justiceforcolombia.org or on +447787821410.
Notes to editors:
1. Justice for Colombia is a British NGO campaigning for peace and social justice in Colombia. Founded in 2002, JFC has campaigned permanently for a peace process which guarantees democracy and social justice.
Website: justiceforcolombia.org. Twitter: @JFColombia.