Colombia’s Prosecutor General assured that he has proof that FARC and ELN armed rebel groups have infiltrated the countrywide agrarian protests which began on Monday, local media reported on Tuesday.
The announcement by Prosecutor General Eduardo Montealegre comes a day after FARC leaders, currently in peace talks with the Colombian government in Cuba, denied similar accusations made last week by Defense Minister Juan Carlos Pinzon.
MORE: FARC not involved in agrarian strike: FARC leader
“The legitimate protests by the people are being infiltrated in some parts of the country by the FARC or the ELN,” Montealegre told reporters on Tuesday.
According to Montealegre, his office has proof that “infiltrations” by the FARC rebel group have occurred in the eastern state of Arauca, and the southern states of Nariño and Caqueta, blu Radio and W Radio reported.
“Similarly in the Norte of Santander by the ELN,” he added referring to the eastern Colombian state on the border with Venezuela.
Montealegre noted that investigators had documents and recording that would prove the accusations made by his office, which would hinder the legitimacy of the agrarian protests, RNC Radio reported.
The nationwide protests headed by Agrarian Dignity groups made up of coffee, rice, and potato growers among others, seek to highlight the allegedly failed promises by the government made last year during the fall agrarian demonstrations.
Oscar Gutierrez, leader of the Coffee Growers Dignity and part of the agrarian movement, has previously denied the allegations of involvement by the illegal armed groups, accusing the government of creating “smoke curtains” and trying to “deceive the population.”
Approximately 16 leaders of the Agrarian Dignity are met on Tuesday with Agricultural Minister Rubén Darío Lizarralde in a bid to end the strikes, spokesperson for the Agrarian Dignity Juan Hernado Matamoros told Colombia Reports.
MORE: In last ditch effort, Santos asks for strikes to be called off
Sources
- Fiscal Montealegre asegura que paro agrario está infiltrado por la guerrilla (W Radio)
- Fiscal confirma que paro agrario está infiltrado por la guerrilla (blu Radio)
- Fiscalía dice que tiene pruebas sobre infiltración de la guerrilla en paro agrario (RCN Radio)
- Interview with Juan Hernado Matamoros (Colombia Reports)