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Colombia's "unexpected" rejection of a much-anticipated peace deal shows the war-torn country continues to be divided, according to Argentine historian Leandro Morgenfeld.
After nearly four years of negotiations, which were hosted in Cuba and closely monitored by European and other Latin American countries, the peace deal between the government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) was rejected, albeit by a slight margin, in a referendum Sunday.
While there were mitigating circumstances for the surprising majority "No" vote, such as low voter turnout and poor weather, the results show a country torn by civil war, said Morgenfeld.
"The marginal victory of the 'No' (vote) reveals Colombia continues to be polarized. It is a defeat for the democratic and progressive forces that have been working towards peace for years, and a victory for ex-president Alvaro Uribe and his ultra-conservative allies, who favor continued fighting," Morgenfeld told Xinhua on Sunday.
Uribe (2002-2010) and his right-wing Democratic Center party campaigned intensely against the peace deal, claiming it didn't go far enough to hold the leftist rebels accountable for their violent actions.
However, pre-referendum polls consistently reported most Colombians were in favor of the deal, so Sunday's results came as a shock.
While "it is too soon to cite the causes of the surprise victory" of the "No" camp, said Morgenfeld, "electoral absenteeism ran at more than 60 percent, which can be explained in part by the strong storm that complicated attendance at voting stations. A little more than 13 million people voted out of the 35 million who were eligible to vote."
The lack of voter turnout, Morgenfeld believes, allowed a minority who are against the peace process for personal reasons or vested interests, to decide the outcome for the remainder of the people.
Some "20 percent of the population, against the Havana agreements, ended up deciding for everyone and destroying a solution that had been negotiated for four years," said Morgenfeld.
The deal was defeated by a vote of 50.21 percent to 49.78 percent.
Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos and FARC leaders reacted to the outcome by affirming their commitment to a bilateral ceasefire, and willingness to continue the peace process by renegotiating the terms of the agreement, especially those dealing with accountability.
But the results have "weakened President Santos," noted Morgenfeld. "It remains to be seen how Colombian society processes this unexpected outcome and what alternatives can be found."
(APD)
