The ceasefire order came after peace negotiators from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and the Colombian government announced Wednesday they had concluded a final accord after almost four years of talks in Cuba.
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The peace agreement was announced Wednesday after more than four years of grueling negotiations in Cuba.
Legislators have 30 days to go over the 297-page text, which will be made public for all Colombians to read before voting on it in an up-or-down referendum on October 2.
“Yet just as the United States has been Colombia’s partner in a time of war, we will be Colombia’s partner in waging peace”, the statement read.
U.S. President Barack Obama congratulated Colombia on the deal on Thursday and promised U.S. support for implementing it.
“Today begins the end of the suffering, the pain and the tragedy of war”, President Juan Manuel Santos said in a nationally televised address after the agreement was announced.
The spokesperson added: “Britain led the drafting of a United Nations security council resolution to secure worldwide support for verifying the ceasefire, and the UK has given practical advice based on our peace-building experience in Northern Ireland”.
If approved by voters, the peace agreement would bring to an end to more than 50 years of a conflict that has displaced more than 5 million residents and led to the deaths of upwards of 220,000 victims.
The accord commits Colombia’s government to carrying out aggressive land reform, overhauling its anti-narcotics strategy and greatly expanding the state’s presence in long-neglected areas.
Santos said it is important the country votes on the agreement.
Peace in Colombia now looks more likely than ever, but a big hurdle still needs to be cleared before the deal is ratified.
Santos’ plebiscite is not without risks. That is the lowest since he took office in 2010.
“It’s a crucial moment for Colombia”, the government’s chief negotiator said. “We have to wait for the citizens’ verdict”.
In a statement delivered in June marking an agreement to end the war, however, FARC commander Timoleon Jimenez – or Timochenko, as he is known – stated: “We know that nothing will be achieved easily or quickly”.
Over the 13 months since the FARC declared a unilateral cease-fire and the government reciprocated with an unofficial truce, violence has fallen to the lowest level since the movement was created 52 years ago by outlaw peasant groups joined by communist activists.
In what is considered among the bloodiest armed conflicts in the world and the longest in Latin America, millions of Colombians have been forced to flee their homes as the war spiraled out of control.
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The much-smaller National Liberation Army also remains active, although it’s pursuing a peace deal of its own.
