Colombia Votes on Deal to Turn FARC Guerrillas Into Legal Party
- Five-decade conflict is back on if voters reject the agreement
- Former President Uribe objects to FARC leaders in Congress
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Polls have opened in Colombia for a national vote on whether the largest guerrilla army in the Americas should be granted seats in Congress, agricultural reform and reduced sentences for crimes in return for handing in their weapons.
A “yes” vote would give the green light for the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, to convert themselves into a legal political party, while a “no” victory would mean a return to a five-decade conflict, according to President Juan Manuel Santos.