The Community of Sant'Egidio welcomes with great joy the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to the Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos. It emphasizes the support for dialogue and negotiation as the only feasible ways to reach an end to conflicts. This is a crucial signal for a world that is experiencing a third world war but in pieces. In particular, Pope Francis argues the dispute has widened worryingly during recent months. Meanwhile, in Colombia, there is a great impulse to continue the peace process between the government and the Farc, which was sealed by the Cartagena agreements of last September 26, by going in this way beyond the setback that was constituted by the victory of the "no" in the referendum.
The Nobel Prize encourages President Santos to maintain a commitment that we have known and appreciated, especially because the Community has been carrying out the work of facilitating the meeting between the parties in Colombia. For the good of this great Latin American country, it is not possible to go back to a war that lasted 52 years and caused over 200,000 deaths and 5 million displaced persons.
