What Farc deal means for Syria

Colombia has ended a 52-year-old insurgency. Could Damascus do the same?

Colombia’s peace deal with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, known as the Farc, is a historic moment for the country. For 52 years, the Farc have fought a left-wing insurgency against the government of Colombia. Now, finally, after many false starts, there is a “definitive” peace. From the Middle East, it is natural to wonder if the deal offers lessons for the Syrian civil war. There are certainly things to learn, but the situations are, unfortunately, rather different.

Start with the death toll. Over the half century of the Colombian conflict, around 220,000 were killed. In just five years of the Syrian war, at least twice that number have been killed. That makes peace even harder, because the families of all of those killed – plus those maimed, tortured, raped and traumatised – are still around. There has simply not been enough time for the wounds to heal.

The Syrian war is growing more, not less, complicated, . As the left-wing insurgencies of Central and South America burned through the decades, groups collapsed, were broken-up or made peace with governments. The Farc is one of the last. In Syria, on the other hand, new groups are still being formed and there is, on the rebel side, no obvious main faction. Making peace, even were the Syrian government so inclined, means talking to dozens of groups.

Not that the regime wants to. That’s the other issue. The Farc has been negotiating a peace deal since 2011 – when the Syrian war first started – with more than one government. In Damascus, there is simply no willingness to talk. Even if the regime wanted to talk, what could they talk about? With the Farc and the Colombian government, there were ideas behind the guns; there were policies that could be discussed. In Syria, Mr Al Assad wants to remain in power solely. That is not a basis for negotiations.

All of which may sound depressing. Yet the Farc example shows that, no matter how bitter the conflict and how far apart the participants seem, there is always some path forward. A willingness to come to a peace deal is the essential first step – and we must hope that message is heard in Damascus soon.