Ms Mariela Kohon:

Regarding the bleakness, it is difficult because we are faced with all of these challenges. The reality, however, is that many people are working very hard to support the implementation of the peace agreement. There is an interesting process called Defendamos la Paz, DLP - let us defend the peace. That is a loose alliance of many different people from different political sectors and from many different political perspectives. It includes journalists, politicians and human rights defenders who are trying to work to defend the peace agreement and its implementation. A major demonstration planned for 26 July is being programmed specifically around the killings of leaders. I would not want to give an impression that it is all bleakness. The agreement is still there. It is an official document of the UN Security Council and it needs to be reclaimed and protected.

The verification mission report released just last week recognised that the Territorially Focused Development Programmes, PDETs, have been established and some more projects for reincorporation have been agreed. There are, therefore, some small areas where it is possible to see that efforts are being made. It is also important to state that the cessation of combat between FARC and the Colombian army has saved thousands of lives. That is something to be recognised. The overwhelming sense for many people, however, is that there is a lack of will in many areas and that the killings are alarming.

As the Deputy mentioned, FARC has that history with the Patriotic Union Party. During a previous attempt at a peace process, it entered the political process and more than 4,000 members of the Patriotic Union Party were assassinated. Many of those were elected members of congress, councillors and mayors. That is the last experience they have of entering the political process. That is especially alarming given the local elections. One of the leaders of FARC said yesterday that he had information that there was a plan to systematically kill members of the organisation. There is much concern because of that. Many of the security measures being called for do not just involve bodyguards and armoured cars. They concern collective protection and involve fundamentally changing the use of weapons in politics, which has happened historically in Colombian.

Another problem is where there are not sustainable economic projects for the FARC members in the region to be involved in. The peace agreement has not got rid of the illegal economy or the other armed groups. There is a criminal offer there and people can be tempted when they do not have sustainable ways of making a living.

The Irish embassy was established in January. Ireland has the history of the peace process and the Colombians have greatly benefitted from that experience. If Ireland does end up on the Security Council, it would have a significant role in terms of the mandate on the UN verification mission. The security council is visiting Colombia tomorrow, I think. Those kinds of visits are vital as is making sure the agenda is balanced and that they have access to all sectors of Colombian society. On the mine, it is a region where many indigenous children from the Wayúu community have died because of malnutrition. There are serious issues in that region. We have had contact with the union that tries to organise workers in that mine. Any kind of visit from the diplomatic community to the regions is incredibly important, as they can see things first hand and have direct access to the communities. The Irish embassy has a big role to play there. The EU has a group of ambassadors that focus on human rights defenders. They do things like inviting human rights defenders to the embassy, supporting human rights initiatives and pushing for support for the transitional justice process.