A top ex-FARC commander told AFP on Tuesday that ‘messages of hate’ could fuel renewed violence in Colombia after the country’s president-elect vowed to jail him and unwind a key part of the country’s landmark 2016 peace deal.
Rodrigo Londono, aka Timochenko, said former guerrilla leaders had written to right-wing president-elect Abelardo de la Espriella, recognising his recent election victory and seeking talks.
De la Espriella had earlier branded Timochenko a war criminal, saying that he deserved to spend life in prison and vowing to work toward that goal.
The hard-right firebrand has promised to end talks with dissident groups, bomb drug-running guerrillas and scrap any tribunals, which he believes allowed former FARC leaders to escape punishment.
Londono warned that persistent stigmatisation of former guerrillas had been accompanied by messages of hate that risked generating violence.
“There are people with privileged platforms spreading such messages, and that is extremely dangerous,” he said.
“It puts everyone at risk,” he mentioned.
He said again that former FARC leaders remained committed to the peace deal and hoped to discuss its implementation with the incoming government, which takes office on 7 August.
