Press Release

Contact:
Lisa Haugaard, Executive Director
(202) 546-7010 |  lisah@lawg.org

18 May 2017

LAWG Urges Trump Administration to Fully Support Peace Accord Implementation in Colombia

 

Washington, D.C.—On May 18, President Juan Manuel Santos of Colombia is meeting with President Donald J. Trump at the White House. According to the official statement regarding the visit, topics to be discussed include peace accord implementation and engagement on shared security objectives, such as counternarcotics and transnational organized crime.

In light of President Santos’ visit, the Latin America Working Group (LAWG) strongly advocates for U.S. financial and diplomatic support for the implementation of the historic peace accords with the FARC guerrillas, including a focus on the victims of violence by all armed actors and their rights to truth, justice, reparations and a guarantee that the brutal past not be repeated.

“As the Colombian President is in Washington, we urge the Trump Administration and U.S. members of Congress to fully support and fund peace accord implementation in Colombia, and we encourage the Colombian government to fully, effectively, and faithfully implement the peace accords, in all ways but especially regarding its commitments to the victims of violence,” says Lisa Haugaard, executive director at LAWG.

Earlier this year, LAWG and a group of U.S. faith, humanitarian, labor, environmental, and other nongovernmental organizations wrote a letter to Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on these same matters. The letter can be found here.

Please see this infographic on the benefits of supporting peace in Colombia.

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