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I'm really saddened to see such uninformed comments here, regarding Colombia's situation. I am victim of FARC's wrongdoing, i've lost family members, peace and

I'm really saddened to see such uninformed comments here, regarding Colombia's situation. I am victim of FARC's wrongdoing, i've lost family members, peace and a place to live to them. I've also suffered similar damages from paramilitar actors here in the Caribbean coast. A peace agreement kills FARC legitimacy and their international position. If they «agree» to stop their actions, you'll see a bunch of former supporters (like those insane danish supporters) moving to the mainstream left of this country, Polo Democrático, who've failed to distance themselves from Venezuela, and indirectly, from FARC (just like the right wing, which is deeply entangled with paramilitarism). People who live away from the war zones are most ikely to support the NO, after all, it's not their kids, brothers and fathers whose lives are being sacrficed. People living in war zones just want it to stop. Seriously. Uribe moved the conflict to rural and underdeveloped areas of this country, so peope living on the big cities (Bogotá, Medellín, Cali, etc.) do not see the big influence of FARC's actions, they live instead under the horror of ex-paramilitar criminal bands, same who signed a peace agreement with Uribe. So it comes to me as a surprise how the least affected by the war, and the ones getting a huge slice of the paramilitar violence, are the ones voting for NO (Antioquia is understandable, Uribe is like a god there). I support the peace agreement, but i see concerning flaws in its current form. I am, however, no FARC apologist, and honestly a part of me would like to personally kill some of them, but we need to move forward, end this part of the conflict, and when we move the criminals away from a ideological umbrella, we can see and stop them as they are, criminals who do not give a FUCK about left or right, and i'm damn sure we'll see a chunk of guerilleros forming armed bands, so it's far from over. But this is the first step, and it needs to be done.

santiagogo 10y ago
I agree, as a Colombian I think the most important part about the peace agreement is that it will delegitimize the position for using weapons in politics, which has become a long tradition in our country. It is also a huge step for a country that has solved it's political differences historically by killing the other party, that we have now had the capability of negotiating for 5 years under a truce, and that the right wing government is willing to accept political participation from the guerilla, and to entertain ultra leftist policies under a new bipartisan congress, and that it is recognizing that there is a huge social gap and inequality which led to the formation of the guerrilla in the first place, which should be fixed. Unfortunately violence probably will not end instantly, since the drug trade will continue to be a big business, and that a part of the trained militias will not be able to readjust to normal civilian life once the peace is signed. But at least criminals and narcos will not be shielded under a political left wing speech and be united under a flag, which will eventually lead to violence ending. I am completely confident that the Colombians will vote Yes for the peace process, and that the implementation will be successful. Some very big war criminals will probably walk away scot-free, but the huge overall benefit for the entire country will far outweigh the short term injustice. Expect a lot of big startups coming out of Colombia and some very interesting investment possibilities, since the peace agrement shows confidence in the Colombian institutions and constitution, which will lead to a booming middle class in a 50 million person country which has a lot of space to grow in since it has been historically been overlooked because of the security issues.
- baristaGeek 10y ago
  Excelent arguments santiagogo. We're already becoming LatAm's most important tech hub. Rappi (YC W16) became the first Andreessen Horowitz investment in LatAm. Authy (YC S12) was acquired by Twilio (first time a big Silicon Valley company acquires a colombian one). .CO was acquired by Neustar. There are other startups doing really well such as Platzi (YC W15) and Torre (formerly Bunny Inc).
  - santiagogo 10y ago
    Yep, Rappi is proving that there is a very big untapped market. Authy, Platzi, Torre and .CO etc have already proved that there is top talent. We just need investor confidence for more capital to reach the country and more startups to launch. Disclaimer: I was an early employee at .CO and am good friends with the Authy, Platzi and Torre founders.
baristaGeek 10y ago
Paisa from Medellin, Colombia here (currently living in Bogotá though). Antioquia/Eje Cafetero will definitely be the region with the largest 'No' voting population. I would even think that the region with the next largest 'No' voters would be Bogotá DC. All of this is exactly because of what you say. But let me tell you something: Even in Medellín, there's a correlation between being a young and studied person with voting 'Yes'. The best analogy for me is the Brexit. Where old and uneducated people ruined the UK for the future generations.

santiagogo 10y ago

I agree, as a Colombian I think the most important part about the peace agreement is that it will delegitimize the position for using weapons in politics, which has become a long tradition in our country. It is also a huge step for a country that has solved it's political differences historically by killing the other party, that we have now had the capability of negotiating for 5 years under a truce, and that the right wing government is willing to accept political participation from the guerilla, and to entertain ultra leftist policies under a new bipartisan congress, and that it is recognizing that there is a huge social gap and inequality which led to the formation of the guerrilla in the first place, which should be fixed. Unfortunately violence probably will not end instantly, since the drug trade will continue to be a big business, and that a part of the trained militias will not be able to readjust to normal civilian life once the peace is signed. But at least criminals and narcos will not be shielded under a political left wing speech and be united under a flag, which will eventually lead to violence ending. I am completely confident that the Colombians will vote Yes for the peace process, and that the implementation will be successful. Some very big war criminals will probably walk away scot-free, but the huge overall benefit for the entire country will far outweigh the short term injustice. Expect a lot of big startups coming out of Colombia and some very interesting investment possibilities, since the peace agrement shows confidence in the Colombian institutions and constitution, which will lead to a booming middle class in a 50 million person country which has a lot of space to grow in since it has been historically been overlooked because of the security issues.

baristaGeek 10y ago
Excelent arguments santiagogo. We're already becoming LatAm's most important tech hub. Rappi (YC W16) became the first Andreessen Horowitz investment in LatAm. Authy (YC S12) was acquired by Twilio (first time a big Silicon Valley company acquires a colombian one). .CO was acquired by Neustar. There are other startups doing really well such as Platzi (YC W15) and Torre (formerly Bunny Inc).
- santiagogo 10y ago
  Yep, Rappi is proving that there is a very big untapped market. Authy, Platzi, Torre and .CO etc have already proved that there is top talent. We just need investor confidence for more capital to reach the country and more startups to launch. Disclaimer: I was an early employee at .CO and am good friends with the Authy, Platzi and Torre founders.

baristaGeek 10y ago

Paisa from Medellin, Colombia here (currently living in Bogotá though). Antioquia/Eje Cafetero will definitely be the region with the largest 'No' voting population. I would even think that the region with the next largest 'No' voters would be Bogotá DC. All of this is exactly because of what you say. But let me tell you something: Even in Medellín, there's a correlation between being a young and studied person with voting 'Yes'. The best analogy for me is the Brexit. Where old and uneducated people ruined the UK for the future generations.