Duque’s Peace? Colombia’s New President and the Future of the Peace Process
On June 17th, Colombians elected former Senator Ivan Duque as their next president. A protégé of former right-wing President Alvaro Uribe, Duque ran in opposition to the signature accomplishment of his predecessor Juan Manuel Santos: a landmark 2016 peace accord that ended half a century of armed conflict with the FARC guerrillas. Duque has promised to revise the peace deal in order to bring about “peace with justice,” including by hardening the transitional justice provisions of the agreement with the FARC. Three out of four Colombians already believe peace accord implementation is proceeding poorly, and the skepticism of the president-elect makes its future all the more uncertain.
What are the prospects of the peace accord under a Duque presidency? How viable are the changes he has promised, and will the accord survive if these changes are enacted? Can a polarized country finally unite behind a revised peace agreement that revisits the balance between justice and peace? What are the consequences if the accord breaks down?
To discuss these questions, the Inter-American Dialogue is pleased to partner with the prestigious World Press Photo Exhibition to host “Duque’s Peace? Colombia’s New President and the Future of the Peace Process.” The above photo, captured by World Press Photo award-winning photographer Juan Arredondo, is part of the series “Peace Football Club,” which documents friendly matches between FARC, military and villagers from regions impacted by the former violence. More photos from the series will be shown at the event.
Follow this event on Twitter at #DuquePeaceProcess and @The_Dialogue.
Speakers
Adam Isacson
Director of Defense Oversight, Washington Office on Latin America (@adam_wola)
Katie Taylor
Executive Director, Pan-American Development Foundation
Ana Caridad
Program Associate, Latin American and Caribbean Program, The Carter Center (@Anacaridads)
Moderator
Michael Camilleri
Director, Peter D. Bell Rule of Law Program, Inter-American Dialogue (@camillerimj)
EVENT PARTNER:
The “Peace Football Club” series and other award-winning photos will be on display at the World Press Photo Exhibition from October 27 to November 25 at Dupont Underground.
