Workers Revolutionary Party of Colombia
Encyclopedia
Workers Revolutionary Party of Colombia was a political party
in Colombia
. The party was founded in 1982. It emerged out of the 'Majority' faction of the Marxist-Leninist-Maoist Tendency
, a group that had broken away from the Communist Party of Colombia (Marxist-Leninist)
in the mid-1970s.
PRT launched armed struggle against government forces. According to official sources, when the PRT militias were demobilized in 1991 the party had around 200 fighters.
Apart from its armed struggle PRT maintained an open mass front, the trade union
organization Corriente de Integración Sindical
.
(ELN), the Revolutionary Integration Movement - Free Fatherland (MIR-PL) and PRT. Amongst other things, the Trilateral resulted in coordination of mass movement activities, leading up the formation of ¡A Luchar!
as a joint mass movement. On June 20, 1985 PRT took part in, along with ¡A Luchar!, organizing a national general strike against the policies of the Belisario Betancur
government. At the time the National Guerrilla Coordination was born, a coalition consisting of ELN, Popular Liberation Army (EPL), M-19
, MIR-PL, Armed Movement Quintín Lame (MAQL), Commando Ricardo Franco (RF) and PRT. With the entry of FARC-EP into the unity work of Colombian guerrilla movements, the National Guerrilla Coordination evolved into the Coordinadora Guerrillera Simón Bolívar in September 1987. Founding members of CGSB were EPL, UC-ELN, FARC-EP, MAQL, M-19 and PRT.
On behalf of the PRT the peace treaty was signed by Valentín González, Sergio Sierra, Pablo Roncallo, Rafael González and Ernesto Falla.
The weaponry of PRT was destroyed at a ceremony on January 26.
. Rather than organizing party work, PRT cadres became active in social organizations, primarily focus on human rights and peace promotion, in Bolívar
and Sucre
.
Political party
A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...
in Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
. The party was founded in 1982. It emerged out of the 'Majority' faction of the Marxist-Leninist-Maoist Tendency
Marxist-Leninist-Maoist Tendency
Marxist-Leninist-Maoist Tendency was a communist group in Colombia. It emerged in late 1974/early 1975, after the 4th plenary session of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Colombia . The founders of Tendencia ML, had been based in the Pedro Vásquez Rendón regional committee of PCC in...
, a group that had broken away from the Communist Party of Colombia (Marxist-Leninist)
Communist Party of Colombia (marxist-leninist)
Communist Party of Colombia , a political party that splintered from the main Colombian Communist Party around 1965....
in the mid-1970s.
PRT launched armed struggle against government forces. According to official sources, when the PRT militias were demobilized in 1991 the party had around 200 fighters.
Apart from its armed struggle PRT maintained an open mass front, the trade union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
organization Corriente de Integración Sindical
Corriente de Integración Sindical
Corriente de Integración Sindical was a trade unionist group in Colombia, which functioned as the labour wing of the Workers Revolutionary Party....
.
Coordination work
In 1984, PRT entered into the 'Trilateral', a cooperation between the National Liberation ArmyNational Liberation Army (Colombia)
National Liberation Army is a revolutionary, avowed Marxist guerrilla group that has been operating in several regions of Colombia since 1964....
(ELN), the Revolutionary Integration Movement - Free Fatherland (MIR-PL) and PRT. Amongst other things, the Trilateral resulted in coordination of mass movement activities, leading up the formation of ¡A Luchar!
¡A Luchar!
¡A Luchar! a was political movement in Colombia, formed as a coalition of various progressive trade unionist and social movements.-Background:...
as a joint mass movement. On June 20, 1985 PRT took part in, along with ¡A Luchar!, organizing a national general strike against the policies of the Belisario Betancur
Belisario Betancur
Belisario Betancur Cuartas is a Colombian statesman, who as a member of the Colombian Conservative Party was President of Colombia from 1982 to 1986.- Biographic data :...
government. At the time the National Guerrilla Coordination was born, a coalition consisting of ELN, Popular Liberation Army (EPL), M-19
19th of April Movement
The 19th of April Movement or M-19, was a Colombian guerrilla movement. After its demobilization it became a political party, the M-19 Democratic Alliance , or AD/M-19.The M-19 traced its origins to the allegedly fraudulent presidential elections of 19 April 1970...
, MIR-PL, Armed Movement Quintín Lame (MAQL), Commando Ricardo Franco (RF) and PRT. With the entry of FARC-EP into the unity work of Colombian guerrilla movements, the National Guerrilla Coordination evolved into the Coordinadora Guerrillera Simón Bolívar in September 1987. Founding members of CGSB were EPL, UC-ELN, FARC-EP, MAQL, M-19 and PRT.
Peace Treaty
In December 1990, president Virgilio Barco expressed willingness to hold peace talks with PRT. Talks were initiated between the Colombian government and PRT. On December 28 an accord was signed between the government and PRT. On January 25, 1991 a final peace treaty was signed in Don Gabriel, Ovejas municipality, Sucre, between the government and PRT. It stipulated, amongst other things, that:- PRT would become a legal political party
- PRT would gain representation in the Constituent AssemblyConstituent assemblyA constituent assembly is a body composed for the purpose of drafting or adopting a constitution...
. The party was given one seat in the assembly, but without vote. - A TV programme of the party would be broadcasted
- PRT would get a full page ad in 2 national newspapers and 4 regional newspapers, as well half-page ads in 1 national newspaper and 3 regional newspapers.
- Government would pay for an office for PRT in BogotáBogotáBogotá, Distrito Capital , from 1991 to 2000 called Santa Fé de Bogotá, is the capital, and largest city, of Colombia. It is also designated by the national constitution as the capital of the department of Cundinamarca, even though the city of Bogotá now comprises an independent Capital district...
- An armoured car for the PRT spokesperson in the Constituent Assembly, four bodyguards and 14 bulletproof vests for the PRT leadership.
- Government would finance the building of five Casas por la Vida, in Bogotá, BarranquillaBarranquillaBarranquilla is an industrial port city and municipality located in northern Colombia, near the Caribbean Sea. The capital of the Atlántico Department, it is the largest industrial city and port in the Colombian Caribbean region with a population of 1,148,506 as of 2005, which makes it Colombia's...
, MedellínMedellínMedellín , officially the Municipio de Medellín or Municipality of Medellín, is the second largest city in Colombia. It is in the Aburrá Valley, one of the more northerly of the Andes in South America. It has a population of 2.3 million...
, SincelejoSincelejoSincelejo is the capital and the largest city in the Colombian department of Sucre. It is also the main city in the denominated Región Sabanas , a subdivision of the Caribbean Region of Colombia, and the 23rd biggest city by population in Colombia...
and one additional location. - A fund of 300 million pesosColombian pesoThe peso is the currency of Colombia. Its ISO 4217 code is COP and it is also informally abbreviated as COL$. However, the official peso symbol is $. As 20 July 2011, the exchange rate of the Colombian peso is 1750 Colombian pesos to 1 U.S. dollar.-History:The peso has been the currency of Colombia...
would be allocated for projects in the conflict areas of PRT. A joint government-PRT commission would oversee the distribution of the funds. - Subsidy for upkeep, health and education would be given to demobilized PRT fighters, through a fund.
- An Indigenous Police force would be formed within the Colombian National PoliceColombian National PoliceThe National Police of Colombia is the national police force of Colombia. Although the National Police is not part of the Military of Colombia , it constitutes along with them the "Public Force" and is also controlled by the Ministry of Defense. They are the largest police force in Colombia...
.
On behalf of the PRT the peace treaty was signed by Valentín González, Sergio Sierra, Pablo Roncallo, Rafael González and Ernesto Falla.
The weaponry of PRT was destroyed at a ceremony on January 26.
Aftermath
Even though the peace treaty specified that PRT would reorganize themselves as a legal political party, such a move never occurred. Instead some members of PRT joined M-1919th of April Movement
The 19th of April Movement or M-19, was a Colombian guerrilla movement. After its demobilization it became a political party, the M-19 Democratic Alliance , or AD/M-19.The M-19 traced its origins to the allegedly fraudulent presidential elections of 19 April 1970...
. Rather than organizing party work, PRT cadres became active in social organizations, primarily focus on human rights and peace promotion, in Bolívar
Bolívar Department
Bolívar is a department of Colombia. It was named after one of the original nine states of the United States of Colombia. It is located to the north of the country, extending from the coast at Cartagena near the mouth of the Magdalena River, then south along the river to a border with Antioquia.Its...
and Sucre
Sucre Department
Sucre is a department in the Caribbean Region of Colombia. The department ranks 27th by area, and it has a population of 772,010, ranking 20th of all the 32 departments of Colombia...
.