32 relatives of disappeared Colombians will travel to Cuba, where peace talks between FARC and the Colombian government will continue, “not to protest, but to demand the truth” about their missing family members.
Newspaper Semana reported that the group will travel to Cuba in November in order to “demand the truth of the fate of their loved ones” who have allegedly disappeared at the hands of the rebel guerrilla group FARC over the years.
One of the objectives, said Miryam Torres, mother of Juan Camilo who disappeared in 2006, “is to know if they are dead. They will tell us where we are to look for them in order to resolve this battle, because one cannot live eternally waiting to see if they are going to pass the test of survival.”
Torres added that, “we do not expect the FARC will pay attention to us. All we want is to make the victims visible to the world and put a bit of pressure on them, the guerrillas will speak at some point.”
FARC, for their part, has insisted that they have no kidnapped persons in their possession.
Mostly mothers of disappeared persons will travel to Cuba. They will carry with them pictures and documents, intended to give to the FARC negotiators. The group allegedly has a very precise and quiet plan, exhibiting a “silent presence” and asking for a formal hearing with the FARC rather than loudly protesting their pain.
The journalist who has organized the journey to Cuba, Herbin Hoyos, has said that, “if the FARC say that they really don’t have anyone kidnapped in their possession, it is because they have killed them all.”
The exact number or kidnapped victims by FARC is unknown. The Prosecutor’s Office has allegedly recorded 1,730 disappeared between 1990 and 2000, all attributed to the FARC.
FARC and the government negotiators will arrive on November 15 in Havana, Cuba for further peace negotiations which are currently going on in Oslo, Norway.