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Nobel Peace Prize a boon to Colombian peace process

by Rafael Bernal - 10/07/16 6:57 PM ET

Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos received the Nobel Peace Prize Friday, a much-needed respite for a peace process derailed by a national vote against the agreement to end the country’s 52-year war.

{mosads}”With the Nobel Prize, I think there’s an impulse to give trust and credibility to the idea that in Colombia there can be a peace where everyone is under the same umbrella,” Colombian Ambassador to the United States Juan Carlos Pinzón told reporters in Washington Friday.

The Norwegian Nobel Committee announced Santos’ win in the wake of a plebiscite Sunday where voters narrowly rejected the government’s peace agreement with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).

Santos was awarded the prize “for his resolute efforts to bring the country’s more than 50-year-long civil war to an end,” said the Prize Committee.

The celebration came as a breath of fresh air after a difficult week for Santos.

The peace agreement’s opponents, led by former President Alvaro Uribe, argued it was too soft on FARC members, who have resorted to drug trafficking, kidnapping and extortion to fund their movement.

The plebiscite’s result led to confusion, as no alternate plan had been considered. Both the government and FARC repeatedly stated there was no “Plan B” in the lead-up to the election.

Since the late 1990s, Colombia has received over $10 billion in aid from the United States, under a program with overwhelming bipartisan support known as Plan Colombia. Through weapons and training assistance, the Colombian military gained ground on FARC, ultimately making peace negotiations possible.

“The United States was basically banking on the peace accord,” said Gimena Sanchez-Garzoli, senior associate for the Andes at the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA).

On Monday, U.S. administration and congressional officials scrambled to react to the surprise vote.

“The United States commends the Government and people of Colombia for the democratic process held yesterday and recognizes that difficult decisions are going to have to be taken in the days ahead,” said State Department spokesman John Kirby in a statement.

Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), the first Colombian-American elected to Congress, said, “Though I was surprised at the outcome of yesterday’s vote, I know that the Colombian people are committed to finding a path to a just and lasting peace.”

Over the week, Santos and Uribe met in Bogotá to discuss potential revisions for the agreement with FARC, but no major announcements were made.

In Washington, Pinzón met privately with representatives from the administration, Congress and the private sector.

With members of Congress away on recess, the vote’s effect on future U.S. aid to Colombia remains uncertain.

“There’s no discussions at this point within the government about the President’s request for assistance to Colombia and it’s not worth speculating on,” a senior State Department official told reporters on a call Wednesday.

FARC and the government maintained the ceasefire was not at risk, but were forced to wait for the Uribe-led opposition to present their conditions for a new agreement.

“If Uribe proves that the agreement could be renegotiated, he would win in the eyes of the voters,” said Ricardo Ávila, director of Colombian newspaper Portafolio. “[Uribe’s] main incentive is to embarrass Santos.”

Although uncertainty will remain until a new plan is announced, the Nobel Prize put positive attention back on Santos.

Gallego said the award was “a well-deserved recognition of his bold leadership and continued determination throughout the long and arduous peace process.”

Pinzón said the prize would help to “consolidate peace once and for all, but above all to unite all Colombians.”

“The decision by the Nobel Committee to recognize President Santos’s leadership in pursuing a just and lasting peace was the right one and fully in keeping with the spirit and purpose of its prestigious award,” said Secretary of State John Kerry in a statement Friday. “I hope this decision will lend new momentum towards a settlement in Colombia that will be broadly acceptable and can be put in place as rapidly as possible.”

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