Commanders of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) offered an official apology on Thursday (September 29) for the 2002 Bojaya massacre where guerrillas killed 79 civilians.
Visiting the church which was destroyed in the attack, just days after a peace agreement was signed with the Colombian government, FARC commander Ivan Marquez asked the local community for reconciliation.
“We ask for you to forgive us and that you give us the hope of a spiritual path, allowing us to move forward together with you. Reconciled, we will move towards an era of fairness, for which humble people from every corner of Colombia have yearned for so much,” said Marquez.
The deadly FARC attack on the village killed 48 children as rebels attempted to take control of the Atrato River region from paramilitaries.
The FARC offered an apology for the attack in 2014 in Havana, where peace talks were held for almost four years, but this was the first time commanders had done so at the site itself.
The apology follows that of the FARC’s highest commander Rodrigo Londono alias Timochenko, at the signing of the peace agreements on Monday (September 26), when he asked the nation’s forgiveness for all the suffering caused.
“Once again, we offer an infinite apology, Bojaya. May your words of faith illuminate Colombia, which must make this moment the culmination of a war which never should have happened, and (may they) cure the wounds of our souls which are the deepest,” said Marquez.
Colombians will vote on whether to ratify the peace agreement in a plebiscite on Sunday (October 1). Polls show it is likely to pass easily.
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2016
