Colombians were petitioning to retrieve more than 800,000 hectares of land allegedly seized by leftist rebels, a key issue of the ongoing peace talks to end the five-decade-long armed conflict in the Southern American country.
On the other hand, the rebel Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) was pressing the government to tackle uneven land distribution between the rich and the poor, a key demand of the movement since its inception, El Tiempo daily reported Sunday.
The issue was the centerpiece of the first round of peace talks held by the two sides on October 18 in Norway.
However, those who have allegedly lost property during the insurgent movement are now seeking to take it back.
At the central state of Tolima, where the largest number of claims against FARC have been filed, property owners have registered 1,553 petitions for a total of 57,633 hectares, according to El Tiempo daily.
The central Meta state follows with 1,065 claims filed for a total of 243,975 hectares.
“The figures of the Agriculture Ministry’s Land Restitution Unit show only one part of the magnitude of the theft of land from farmers,” said the daily.
“To date, 9,942 claims have been received for 807,624 hectares.”
The newspaper went on to say that FARC took the lands to “guarantee the mobility of its troops” and to use them as shipping corridors for cocaine.
However, the land the guerrilla took is not in the name of its commanders, because a good portion was distributed to sympathizers to consolidate their support among the masses, it said.
The Colombian government and FARC rebels are expected to hold their second round of direct talks on Nov. 15 in Cuba which will focus on agrarian policy and land reform.
The rebel movement began when landless peasants took up arms to change or overthrow the government.
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