Here’s video, and here’s my written testimony, from this morning’s hearing about “Peace and Victims’ Rights in Colombia” in the House of Representatives’ Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission. It was a great hearing, featuring three social leaders working on the front lines of peace accord implementation and inclusion in Colombia.
My role was to talk about future directions for U.S. policy. I suggested five:
- Keep the focus on rural areas, especially government presence.
- Keep victims at the center of programming and diplomatic support.
- Uphold the justice system, and help make it work better.
- Be more flexible with the ban on “material support” for ex-FARC.
- Coca and Venezuela are priorities, but don’t lose sight of the central role of accord implementation.