Colombia’s Petro cuts emergency power amid deadly border violence | Political Affairs

Violence between armed groups in the Catatumbo region has displaced more than 32,000 people, rights groups say.

Colombia’s president has issued a decree granting emergency powers to restore peace in a region on the border with Venezuela that has been plagued by deadly violence between rival armed groups.

Gustavo Petro’s Friday law gives him up to 270 days to impose curfews, restrict traffic and take other measures that often violate Colombians’ rights or require congressional approval, the Associated Press reported.

It operates in the rural area of ​​Catatumbo on the northeastern border of Colombia and Venezuela.

The area has seen an increase in violence since mid-January between the rebels of the National Liberation Army (ELN) and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), who are fighting for control of drug-trafficking routes.

At least 80 people have been killed, and more than 32,000 have been forced to flee their homes in recent weeks, according to rights groups. Residents say these armed groups enter house to house and attack indiscriminately.

Last week, Petro’s government announced that it would suspend peace talks with the ELN due to the outbreak of violence in Catatumbo.

The left-wing president, who takes office in 2022, had pledged to bring “total peace” to the South American country after decades of conflict between the government, military officials and rebel groups.

Petro has pushed for talks with armed groups, and his strategy has reduced violence. But rebel fighting and clashes with the Colombian army continued.

The government has deployed thousands of troops to Catatumbo to try to stop the latest violence. On Wednesday, the office of Colombia’s attorney general has also issued arrest warrants for ELN leaders.

It said in a statement that it “revokes the benefits of the suspended arrest of 31 representatives [the ELN] … who were employed by the national government as spokespersons in the negotiations”.

The ELN has denied attacking civilians and said its attacks were against the former FARC rebel group and the defected rebels it supports.

The FARC was the largest rebel group in the country, but after a 2016 peace deal largely disintegrated the organization, several factions broke away. They also participated in the recent peace talks with Petro’s government.

Rights groups have urged the government to ensure that the people of Catatumbo are protected.

“We call on the Colombian authorities to immediately take all necessary measures to protect civilians in the Catatumbo region, including human rights defenders,” Amnesty International said, warning of “increasing threats of detention, continued executions, and enforced disappearances”.

United Nations chief Antonio Guterres also expressed concern this week about the deteriorating situation.

Guterres called for an “immediate cessation of acts of violence against the public and access to people that cannot be prevented,” his spokesman said.

Many residents of Catatumbo have fled to Venezuela or the neighboring Colombian region of Norte de Santander.

Adib Fletcher, senior regional director for Latin America and the Caribbean at the aid group Project HOPE, said displaced families – including mothers with young children – were arriving in large numbers in Norte de Santander.

“Families have fled with one or two bags, and are not sure when they will be able to return to their homes,” Fletcher said in a statement Wednesday.

“As people find shelter in crowded areas, we are concerned about outbreaks of disease and increased strain on the local health system.”

Zilenia Pana, 48, fled the fighting with her eight and 13-year-old children for safety in Ocana, a town in Norte de Santander.

Seeing the dead bodies was painful, painful. That breaks your soul, your heart,” Pana told AFP.

He said he is praying for the fighting to end so he can return home with his children. “That’s all we want. That’s all we ask of those people,” he said.