FARC rebels pledge to punish murderers of community leader

The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) reiterated Monday in Havana its condemnation for the assassination of Afro-Colombian community leader Genaro Garcia, saying guerrilla members involved in the crime would be punished.

"Such reprehensible acts cannot be committed by units belonging to the FARC. We are committed to punishing this crime and to take appropriate provisions and measures to prevent them from happening ever again," said Pablo Catatumbo, a member of the FARC's delegation to the Havana talks, in a statement disclosed to the press.

Garcia, a representative of the Community Council of Alto Mira and Frontera, was killed on Aug. 3 in the rural community of Tumaco, in the Colombian department of Nariño, which was immediately condemned by the FARC.

"Events like this directly impact the processes of organization and popular struggle with which we identify, while contradicting FARC policy about our relationship with civilians and our respect for ethnic communities," Catatumbo stressed.

The FARC and the Colombian government have been holding peace talks in Havana since November 2012. These are aimed at ending over 50 years of armed conflict that has left over 220,000 dead and six million displaced, according to official figures.