A FARC Rebel In Colombia Explains Why He Wanted Out -- L.A. Times
He knew a year ago that the rebel group was a lost cause, but he bided his time. Now he watches his back.
BOGOTA, Colombia — Leftist rebel Reinel Usuga surrendered this month because he was afraid of dying in battle and being buried in an unmarked grave even as rebel leaders negotiate a possible peace agreement that would make such a death pointless — perhaps even absurd.
But Usuga, 30, a squad commander with the 57th Front Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, said in an interview days after his surrender that another issue irked him: The apparent "comfort" of rebel leaders negotiating in Cuba was an irritating juxtaposition to the everyday risks he and his comrades were facing in the jungle.
"We all realize they are living in better conditions than those of us in the line of fire," said Usuga, a 10-year veteran of FARC, Colombia's largest and apparently dwindling rebel group. "There are no safe zones left in the 57th Front. Just when it seems quiet, something happens, a bombardment or ground attack. The armed forces were always on top of us."
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My Comment: The FARC rebel group has been around for decades .... so it's demise will not be overnight. But it is true that the momentum is no longer on their side, and I am also sure that as peace talks continue the last thing that a rebel soldier (or a government soldier) wants right now is to be last soldier killed in this very long conflict.
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