Colombian Govt. Hands Over Farm Belonging To Former Paramilitary Leader

The Colombian Government has handed over to fifty peasant families, victims of the armed conflict, the Támesis farm, which had been occupied by Carlos Castaño, former paramilitary leader of the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (Auc), as a form of reparation.

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The handover of the 591-hectare property, located in the municipality of Montería, in the Colombian department of Córdoba, was attended by President Gustavo Petro on Saturday. "Here begins the agrarian reform", which will be "the basis" to achieve peace in the country, said the president.

"If we are going to talk about peace, this is what it is, it is that the majorities in the countryside or in the city can have access to the instruments of wealth creation," he said.

At the same time, the head of state pointed out that the delivery of the lands must be accompanied by the presence of the institutions, so that the acts of dispossession by the armed groups of which the peasants were victims are not repeated.

"To the peasant families that come to these lands, the State must provide security, it is an order from the president. We are not going to give them the land and leave them stranded," he promised.

For its part, the Special Assets Society (SAE), through which the delivery was made, said in a statement that this initiative seeks to "provide production and subsistence alternatives that transform the living conditions of the peasant families living in the area, so as to contribute to an environmentally sustainable rural development".