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WORLD NEWS Monday 28 august 2017

Former Colombia rebels try hand at politics with new party

renouncing in any way our vote a former guerrilla into
fundamental principles or Congress.
societal project,” he said. “They’re not going to be re-
The organization has sig- ceived very warmly in most
naled that it will adhere of Colombia,” said Adam
to its Marxist roots and fo- Isacson of the Washington
cus on winning votes from Office on Latin America
peasants, workers and the think tank.
urban middle class with a “Their human rights record
social justice platform, but hurt them.
it faces opposition from Their media image is terri-
many who identify the ble. Most Colombians quite
guerrillas with kidnappings simply aren’t socialists or
and terrorism. communists.”
A poll released in August But, he added, “All is not
found that fewer than 10 lost. A message of wanting
percent of Colombians to redistribute wealth and
said they had total confi- undo economic injustice
dence in the rebels as a could probably do quite
political party and a large well in a lot of poor areas
majority said they’d never of Colombia.” q

Rodrigo Londono, right, also known as Timoleon Jimenez or Timochenko, the top commander of
the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), applauds next to fellow rebel leader Ivan
Marquez, before an audience of former guerrillas as they lead the FARC’s National Congress in
Bogota, Colombia, Sunday, Aug, 27, 2017.
(AP Photo/Fernando Vergara)
By CHRISTINE ARMARIO The Revolutionary Armed develop their political ide-
Associated Press Forces of Colombia will ology.
BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) transform into a political “We are taking an extraor-
— After more than five de- party under a new, still-to- dinary step in the history
cades of battle in Colom- be-announced name as of the common people’s
bia’s jungles, the nation’s part of a historic peace struggle in Colombia,” said
largest rebel movement deal signed last year. Rodrigo Londono, bet-
initiated the launch of its The accords guarantee the ter known by his nom de
political party Sunday at a ex-combatants 10 seats guerre Timochenko, to an
concrete convention cen- in Congress and the same audience of former guerril-
ter in the capital, vowing funding the state provides las dressed in white T-shirts
to upend the country’s tra- to the nation’s 13 other po- with the hashtag #Nuveo-
ditional conservatism with litical parties, in addition to Partido (#NewParty) on the
the creation of an alterna- a half-million dollars in fund- back.
tive leftist coalition. ing to begin a think tank to “This doesn’t mean we are

100 police killed in Rio this year so far

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Bra- the 2016 Summer Games. 8-year-old was off duty
zilian police have buried About 200 people attend- when armed men ap-
the 100th police officer to ed the burial of Sgt. Fabio proached. Authorities say
be killed in the state of Rio Cavalcante Sunday after- he was shot at least 10
de Janeiro this year. noon. The 39-year-old offi- times.Rio is by far the most
The grim milestone under- cer was killed on Saturday dangerous place for police
scores a surge in violence in Baixada Fluminense, one to work in Brazil. Many more
that has prompted authori- of Rio’s most violent dis- officers are killed here than
ties to deploy Army troops tricts. in much larger states, like
across Rio, which hosted The married father of an Sao Paulo. q