Former Cuban President Fidel Castro met Sunday with a delegation of Colombian human rights defenders headed by Senator Piedad Cordoba in Havana.
In this, the second meeting in a week between Castro and Cordoba, the civil conflict in Colombia was again on the table for discussion.
Castro said that he has faith that a man like U.S. President Barack Obama, whose background is a mix of black, white, Christian and Muslim, will be instrumental in encouraging peace in conflicts such as Colombia’s.
The two hour meeting was also attended by members of Cordoba’s organization Colombians for Peace, who Castro presented with copies of his book “The Strategic Victory.”
Cordoba met with Castro last Thursday to discuss the road to peace in Colombia with the Cuban leader.
As well as leading Colombians for Peace, Cordoba is also president of the Colombian Congress’ Peace Commission. Her announcement that she planned to present a peace proposal involving Colombian guerrilla groups to South American regional body UNASUR was shot down by the new government of Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos. The new administration said that it would not recognize peace talks with the guerrilla which are not authorized through official channels
Cordoba arrived in Havana last Wednesday. Her meeting with Castro is the latest in a series of talks she has held to promote her peace initiative. Recently she has met with Argentinian President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner and Venezuelan Foreign Minister Nicolas Maduro.
In the past, Cordoba has been involved in several negotiations for the release of FARC-held hostages and campaigned in Europe to win support for a prisoner swap of FARC captives for incarcerated guerrillas.
The Colombians for Peace leader was forced to cut her European tour short and return to Colombia to face accusations of “FARC-politics.” Colombian Supreme Court President Jaime Arrubla said recentlythat the charges lack conclusive evidence.
Cordoba has denied the accusations on many occasions, saying that she is being prosecuted for a “crime of opinion,” and that the charges are “persecution,” which “come from the presidency.”
The senator was last in Cuba in March 2008, along with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and the mother of then-FARC hostage Ingrid Betancourt.