Colombian Council of Ministers [CRISIS]

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1 Eighth Annual Session of the Gaucho Model United Nations Conference February 18 19, 2017 Colombian Council of Ministers [CRISIS] Topic: FARC Peace Deal Negotiations Chair: Mia Sen Co-Chairs: Joshua Christian Crisis Directors: Robby Batchelder and Daniel Bernal-Otero

2 Crisis Director s Letter Dear Delegates, Hello and welcome to the 2017 UC Santa Barbara Gaucho Model UN conference. My name is Robert Batchelder, and I will be serving as crisis director for the Colombia peace negotiations. I am a second-year Earth Science major at UCSB and have been doing Model United Nations since the fall I have had the opportunity of competing at two conferences, chairing and working in two crisis staff rooms as well as acting as crisis director at this year s SBIMUN. We have been working very hard to ensure that this is a fun and challenging crisis room for us all. Alongside me are your other Crisis Director Daniel Bernal Otero, Chair Mia and Co-Chair Josh Christian. Being delegates in the Colombian council of ministers your goal is to create a longlasting peace deal between the government and FARC. I look forward to your creative and unique responses to the issue and crises. I hope we can create dynamic enough crises to keep up! If you have any questions or concerns, please me at the address below. Best, Robert Batchelder Crisis Director, Colombian Council of Ministers colombia@sbmun.org 2

3 Chair s Letter Dear Delegates, Hello MUNsters! Welcome to GauchoMUN 2017! My name is Mia Sen, and I will be your chair for the Colombian Crisis. I am a 4th year Physics major. Model UN has been a part of my life since high school and all throughout the four years of my college experience. This committee will aim to create a simulation of how the United Nations deal with crisis situations. Expect to be on your feet the whole time as our fantastic crisis team is beyond prepared for a rollercoaster of a committee session. The Colombian crisis has been a poignant issue that has been overlooked by many of the world powers, but it is an entirely worthwhile endeavor to try to find multiple solutions to this crisis. Peace in Colombia is would mean stability for large parts of South America. I hope to see you create a worthy solution for this situation we have at hand. I also hope that in this endeavor, you learn to work with your peers, deliberate out a worthy solution and learn to write out crisis directives. Warm Regards, Mia Sen Chair, Colombian Council of Ministers colombia@sbmun.org 3

4 Co-Chair s Letter Dear Delegates, Welcome to GauchoMUN 2017! My name is Joshua Christian, and I will be serving as Co-Chair of the Colombian Council of Ministers. I am a 2nd year Biology major with the intent to become a Doctor. I have been in Model United Nations for over 5 years, and believe it to be a worthwhile and exciting endeavor. Colombia is still volatile. Solutions applied today will have lasting effects not only for the local population, but for South American stability. As evidenced by the referendum, it is apparent that the two sides within this conflict are evenly matched in support. Tensions can incite the region to the brink of war. It is up to you to choose a different path, and achieve a lasting peace that fulfills the desires of both sides, however tenuous. It is apparent that for the Colombian people to survive, they must be united both politically and culturally. I look forward to working with all of you. Compromise and common solutions will get you farther than direct action. Best, Josh Christian Co-Chair, Colombian Council of Ministers colombia@sbmun.org 4

5 Position Papers Position papers are due by 11:59pm on Tuesday, February 14, 2017 to the committee Please ensure that it is ed to the chairs by that time to be eligible for awards. Some of the things we will be looking for while judging the quality of position papers are as follows: Ability to provide a background of the topic and your assigned individual (two paragraphs maximum) How will you as your character address the situation? What plans do you have for the committee to be able to efficiently resolve the conflict as a member of the Colombian Council of Ministers? (one paragraph maximum) Specific details on your plans for committee, such as: who you plan to work with or believe you could best work with to achieve your goals, what actions you will be taking or introducing, specific focuses related to the FARC Peace Deal Negotiations that you would like to contribute your knowledge to more- i.e. political affairs, economic and financial, public relations. (two paragraphs maximum) Committee Background This committee is concerned with the FARC peace negotiations. The goal of the committee is to figure out a resolution to the 52-year conflict that has plagued Colombia. In the council are members of the government from both parties and members of FARC. There are a wide array of political view and backgrounds represented in this council. As delegates you must balance your character's beliefs with the goals of the committee. 5

A Brief History The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) formed on May 27, 1964. The group was formed by Manuel Marulanda of the Colombian Communist Party and Jacobo Arenas.

6 A Brief History The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) formed on May 27, The group was formed by Manuel Marulanda of the Colombian Communist Party and Jacobo Arenas. The group formed originally to represent the rural peoples of Colombia whom they felt were neglected especially after La Violencia. The new group settled in Marquetalia, Tolima. On May 27, 1964, the Colombian army and FARC met for the first time. The Colombian army attacked Marquetalia and 48 guerrilla fighters fought back. After the attack on July 20 of the same year, those guerillas militias met with others from various communities and organized formally declaring themselves a guerilla group originally under the same Southern Bloc. Their purpose was to defend rural communities against the Colombian government. In 1966, they held a second conference and changed their name to FARC. After this conference, FARC shifted its focus from being merely defensive to providing education and healthcare to its rural communities. It also worked on expanding, training militants and carrying out attacks. By the late 1970 s FARC was kidnapping for ransom and trafficking cocaine to pay for its training camps and other operations. In 1985, FARC along with other leftist groups formed a political party, the Patriotic Union or UP, as part of the Uribe Accords. The goal of these accords was to try to have FARC and other militant Figure 1 - Early Members of the FARC groups transition into a legitimate political party, like today's peace talks. In the following year, UP saw much success winning 350 local council seats, 6 senate seats and 9 house seats. Unfortunately, this did not end the conflict. Throughout the 1980 s UP members disappeared or were assassinated, often by the army, right-wing paramilitaries and/or drug gangs. During this time, FARC also continued its violent tactics of kidnappings. FARC did not believe the changes made by the government were adequate and in response to the kidnappings, the 6

7 wealthy individuals in Colombia, the main targets of FARC kidnappings, formed their own paramilitary defense groups like Death to Kidnappers (MAS). In 1999, FARC s power reached its peak with around 18,000 members and some 3,000 kidnappings. Discontent with the violence in 1999 resulted in approximately a quarter of the Colombian population protesting, and again later that year, FARC began talks with the Colombian government. Still in 2000, the Colombian State initiated Plan Colombia with the United States, which had the United States providing around $9 billion in military aid aimed at curbing the drug trade and helping Colombia regain control over its country. In 2002, the peace talks that began in 1999 were ended by the government with no peace being achieved, and Alvaro Uribe won the presidency with a campaign that focused on more aggressively fighting the guerrilla presence in the country. Uribe s aggressive policies worked and during his tenure as president, FARC s numbers were greatly reduced and the Patriotic Union was disbanded. After Uribe in 2012 President Santos was elected president. He breathed new life into the peace process with FARC. In 2012, FARC and the government entered peace negotiations beginning in Oslo, Norway and moving to Havana, Cuba. The new negotiations had five key goals: 1. Ending the Violence 2. Protecting the rights of the victims 3. Land Restitution 4. Reintegrating FARC into society and politics 5. Combating Drug Trafficking In June 2016, Rodrigo Londono, the leader of FARC since 2011, met with Santos to sign a permanent ceasefire. That September, Londono and Santos signed the final peace agreement only to have it be rejected by the Colombian public by a slim margin. Timeline from Election of President Santos to the Present August 2010: Juan Manuel Santos is elected president of Colombia September 2010: FARC increases its campaign of violence. Senior FARC commander Mono Jojoy is killed by the Colombian army February 2011: FARC releases some hostages 7

8 August 2011: President Santos changes tactics on FARC in response to increased hit-andrun raids November 2011: Colombian military kills Alfonso Cano leader of FARC. Timoleon Jimenez becomes new FARC leader August 2012: President Santos announces exploratory talks are underway with FARC. Congress approves law for peace talks in June November 2012: FARC declares two-month ceasefire as peace talks with the government began taking place in Cuba June 2014: President Santos re-elected January 2015: President Santos announces government is willing for a bilateral ceasefire with FARC, in response to FARC s December unilateral ceasefire September 2015: Special courts are established to try crimes committed during the conflict, as well as an amnesty law December 2015: FARC and the government sign a deal on paying reparations and guaranteeing justice for the victims of the civil war March 2016: Government and FARC announce they seek a deal by the end of 2016 June 2016: Government and FARC sign a definitive ceasefire and disarmament agreement September 2016: Government and FARC sign a peace accord formally bringing the conflict to an end October 2016: Voters reject the peace accord by a small margin November 2016: Government and FARC sign a revised peace accord 8

9 A Colombian Crisis The Colombian crisis started over 60 years ago. The two major causes for the crises were from social and economic factors. In addition to huge government distrust, the rise of new political thought within the area allowed for an ideological foundation to a gritty war. The main combatants included the Incumbent Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). Assassinations, bombings, and skirmishes have all taken place with few large-scale battles. It has always been difficult to determine a defined and clear border of operations, which separate the divided groups. Agents on both sides have fed information, leading to brutal executions of local civilian populaces under the guise of debugging. Guerilla warfare has been employed heavily by FARC to disrupt the Government's operations primarily attacking logistics, senior officials, and important identities. Like the Vietnam war with the United States government often employing tactics including bush patrols and village clearings, offensives by the Colombian government were aimed at the destruction of FARC s command structure and logistics. Both parties enjoyed a healthy amount of international support for their respective causes and the United Nations has chosen to remain somewhat neutral, through their call for a cease fire. The United States and many Western nations supported the incumbent government over FARC for a variety of reasons most notably, to remain a key player, the United States would need a stable proxy country to funnel its respective interests to the surrounding regions. Unofficially, it has been rumored that the United States has held direct joint operations with the Colombian Government. Moreover, FARC received some training and weaponry from sympathetic communist movements globally, but mainly finances itself through the cultivation of narcotics and rural supporters. Bloc Positions Incumbent Government (For Peace) The incumbent Government is the most powerful of all blocs analyzed. They support the peace agreement referendum, and currently have Huan Manuel Santos as acting President. The government politically veers left, and the majority supported the peace treaty terms. It should also be noted that the United Nations supports the most recent terms of the peace treaty. 9

10 Incumbent Government (Anti-Peace) Alvaro Uribe is the ideological spearhead of this faction. Instead of compromising and bending to the will of FARC, they would rather destroy the problem. Uribe used to be the President of Columbia before being succeeded by Huan Manuel Santos. One of the key arguments is the destruction of the drug trade. Both government factions, however, wield incredible military power within the region. Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) FARC was started as a communist rebellion. They engaged in narcotics trafficking and guerrilla warfare and their main opposition came from the Colombian Government. Despite a large technological gap, FARC spread through ideals and word of mouth and under the new peace deal, they would stand to gain an economic boost as well as deregulation of forest development. United States Under President George Bush, the United States escalated aid and training through Plan Colombia, which just so happened to coincide with the Colombian Plan Patriota. Economic and food aid was also delivered, although to a lesser extent. The training of special forces proved to be a deciding factor in the outcome of battles as an unconventional enemy requires unconventional training. There have been some unsubstantiated rumors that the United States has acted directly, although this should come to no surprise given the history of this superpower. Cuba Peace deals were to be held in the capital city of Cuba, Havana. Cuba in the past has supported FARC with small arms and other indirect forms of aid. However, Fidel Castro himself has made gestures of reconciliation, showing a more moderate and balanced position. Cuba remains a supporter of the communist movement through FARC, and favors a peace deal that would allow certain ideals to flourish. 10

Venezuela Venezuela is a harder bloc to analyze without accurate intelligence. They are alleged supporters of FARC and like Cuba, have most likely donated weapons and training.

11 Venezuela Venezuela is a harder bloc to analyze without accurate intelligence. They are alleged supporters of FARC and like Cuba, have most likely donated weapons and training. There is some alleged direct involvement, most likely in the form of providing experienced guerillas. United Nations and International Community The United Nations involvement in the Colombian Crisis started during Álvaro Uribe's presidency in July 2004, when the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights denounced the group publicly, proving that FARC violated Article 17 of the additional Protocol II of the Geneva Convention and the International humanitarian law. The United Nation desires peace and stability in the region and therefore stresses the disarmament of FARC. They are considered a militia because of the methods they employ in their governance. The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has provided much of the relief in the Colombian region. In 2015, the WFP started a program known as Protracted Relief and Recovery Operation, which aimed to reach 660,000 people that were adversely affected over the three years during the conflict. Through its sub-office structures, the WFP tries to lend a hand in remote and insecure conflict-affected areas and attempts to support the Government in situations of emergency, recovery and development. An amount of 61 million US dollars has been allocated in funds to support those that have been rendered destitute by the conflict in the area. In 2016, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) adopted Resolution 2261, which was a bold attempt to Figure 2 - UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-Moon, with the Colombian President and others end the region's longest conflict. This resolution mandates that a political mission of unarmed international observers is created with the political mission to monitor and verify for one year the laying down of arms by the FARC EP, should they agree to end the civil war in Colombia. 11

12 This would mean that there would be a bilateral ceasefire between the two parties involved. The United Nations has since been actively trying to monitor and decrease the conflict in Colombia to stabilize the region. Questions to Consider 1. Why would Columbians living under the incumbent government enjoy peace? 2. What are the cultural differences between both opposing sides? 3. Why would the incumbent Government disagree with a peace deal? 4. How sizable is the advantage enjoyed by the incumbent Government? 12

CFR Backgrounders. Colombia's Civil Conflict. Authors: Danielle Renwick, and Claire Felter, Assistant Copy Editor/Writer Updated: January 11, 2017

CFR Backgrounders. Colombia's Civil Conflict. Authors: Danielle Renwick, and Claire Felter, Assistant Copy Editor/Writer Updated: January 11, 2017 1 of 5 13.01.2017 17:17 CFR Backgrounders Colombia's Civil Conflict Authors: Danielle Renwick, and Claire Felter, Assistant Copy Editor/Writer Updated: January 11, 2017 Introduction Civil conflict in Colombia,