Peacebuilding beyond the 2016 Agreement
With the approval of Phase 3 of the Fund in 2023 and its extension until 2027, the Steering Committee approved a new result aimed at supporting the national government’s efforts to establish peace negotiations with various armed groups that remain active and in conflict.
At the start of negotiations between the national government and the National Liberation Army (ELN), the Catholic Church was invited by both parties to accompany the various negotiation tables. After eight months of peace talks, the parties agreed to establish a Bilateral, National, and Temporary Ceasefire (CFBNT) aimed at improving the humanitarian situation of the populations and territories from August 3, 2023. The Catholic Church was entrusted with being part of the quadripartite monitoring and verification mechanism, composed of the national government, the ELN, the UN Verification Mission, and the Catholic Church. In addition to this mechanism, the communities will carry out a preventive oversight role.
Within this context, the Church was consulted about its availability to participate in the Monitoring and Verification Mechanism (MMV) and in the development of the protocols that would govern the ceasefire. This enabled the Church to carry out preparatory work, holding two regional meetings with the clergy in Chocó and Arauca, as well as a national meeting with Church delegates who would take part in the territorial MMVs
Lessons learnt
As a lesson learnt from the Church’s participation in the ceasefire agreed with the ELN in 2017, the need to allocate resources directly to the dioceses became evident, in order to have available personnel and cover the logistical costs associated with supporting the ceasefire. These included training sessions for their teams, field missions, monitoring activities, information and awareness-raising days on the ceasefire, generating early warnings with primary information, resolving conflicts between actors, and providing support in humanitarian situations that might arise.
The Fund’s first support, implemented in 2024, was therefore focused on strengthening the capacities of the Catholic Church as the entity in charge of the Monitoring and Verification Mechanism for the Bilateral, National and Temporary Ceasefire between the National Government and the ELN, formalised by Decree 104 of 2024.
The strategy helped strengthen ecclesiastic jurisdictions for monitoring the ceasefire and facilitating inclusive territorial dialogues,
in particular
safe spaces fostered the strengthening of social and community networks, promoting social cohesion. Women and LGBTIQ+ individuals actively participated in developing the assessments through these safe spaces, which in turn helped to highlight and address cases of gender-based violence.
[1] Involving participants from the departments of Arauca, Norte de Santander, Antioquia, Santander, Valle del Cauca, Nariño, Cesar, Chocó, Bolívar.
[2] Bringing together ecclesiastic jurisdictions and communities from the following departments: Cundinamarca, Casanare, Vichada, Guainía, Arauca, Santander, Norte de Santander, Nariño, Valle del Cauca, Antioquia, Chocó and Risaralda
The training of delegates from the Catholic Church in terms of gender and human rights approaches resulted in concrete strategies for the participation of vulnerable groups, promoting a more inclusive and sustainable dialogue as part of the mechanism for monitoring and verifying the ceasefire. Finally, the following documents were prepared and delivered to the negotiation table to support informed decision-making:
- A diagnostic report on the situation of women and the LGBTIQ+ community within the framework of the ceasefire
- A report on the impacts of the armed conflict on women and the LGBTIQ+ community
- A detailed report on pedagogical and training initiatives aimed at strengthening the role of women and the LGBTIQ+ community in social oversight