Former FARC leader to testify at Special Peace Jurisdiction
Former Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) leader Rodrigo Londoño, known as ‘Timochenko,’ will testify before the Colombian Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP) today.
Timochenko’s testimony will focus on the 1995 murder of popular Conservative party leader and vocal critic of government corruption Alvaro Gomez Hurtado, whose murder remained unsolved until representative and former guerrilla member Carlos Lozada revealed that the FARC was responsible. Although it had been previously speculated that then-president Ernesto Samper was involved with the assassination, no evidence was ever uncovered.
The testimony will proceed in accordance with the 2016 peace agreement, in which FARC members promised to testify on their activities in front of the JEP without fear of indictment. Timochenko will likely reveal further details of the assassination.
Many former FARC members have shown a commitment to the peace accords even recently admitting to the forced recruitment of minors, a sensitive subject for the country. Timochenko’s testimony may embolden both defenders and opponents of the accords, with supporters arguing that the peace agreement is working and detractors further stating that ex-FARC members should not be in Congress, as Timochenko currently is.
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