BOGOT脕, Colombia (AP) 鈥� Colombians are casting ballots on Sunday in the first round of the , choosing between candidates with radically diverging visions for the future of peace in a country haunted by decades of armed conflict.
The vote, seen as a referendum on outgoing policies, comes 10 years after signed an historic peace pact with guerrillas of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC.
That agreement offered hope to break the nation out of a vicious cycle of fighting between rebel groups and the government but violence has roared back since then, coming to a head . Criminal groups have increasingly launched drone strikes, armed attacks have plagued the race and last June, 39-year-old politician and presidential hopeful was fatally shot at a political rally.
In a country where the fight for peace has long been a part of the political ethos, the question of how to address the conflict is once again dividing the country.
Three top candidates have starkly different approaches
There are 14 candidates on the ballot, but the election has basically turned into a three-horse race.
Senator and peace-builder Ivan Cepeda 鈥� a Petro ally 鈥� has led the polls and promises to carry on with Petro’s to negotiate with the country鈥檚 remaining rebel groups and sign peace agreements with them in an effort to resolve the persistent crisis.
While the peace plan has largely failed as criminals have taken advantage of ceasefires with the government, Cepeda and Petro have maintained strong support among many because of progressive policies pushed forward under Petro, such as boosting the minimum wage.
Running against Cepeda are Abelardo de la Espriella and Paloma Valencia, who have vowed to come down on armed groups with a heavier hand.
De la Espriella 鈥� a bombastic lawyer known as 鈥淭he Tiger鈥� 鈥� has particularly gained traction among voters in recent weeks for pitching himself as an outsider keen on emulating the heavy-handed tactics used in El Salvador鈥檚 war on gangs, which sharply reduced gang violence but fueled accusations of human rights abuses.
Valencia is considered the political protege of Colombia’s , who governed from 2002 to 2010 with strong support from the United States and whose government beat back FARC rebels in an offensive that took a massive civilian toll.
Both de la Espriella and Valencia have touted their affinity for U.S. President even as he has taken a more aggressive stance toward Latin America than any U.S. president in decades and has pressured nations like Colombia, Ecuador and Mexico to more forcefully crack down on criminal groups.
If no candidate wins at least 50% of the vote 鈥� something extremely rare in Colombia 鈥� the two top vote-getters will face a runoff in June.
Colombians also disagree on how best to tackle the violence
Maria Eugenia, a 57-year-old seamstress who was stitching a pair of jeans on Friday in downtown Bogot谩, Colombia’s capital, said she welcomed an all-out offensive on an expanding slate of criminal groups, regardless of the human cost.
While she approved of Petro鈥檚 pushes to improve the country’s medical infrastructure, she said she was voting for de la Espriella because violence in rural areas of the country has gotten out of hand.
鈥淥f course, whenever you come down with a heavy hand, there鈥檚 always going to be debate,鈥� she said. 鈥淏ut some people are going to have to fall to clean up what needs to be cleaned.鈥�
Others, like 26-year-old Cristian Morales, who strolled outside her shop, shook his head.
While Petro鈥檚 peace plan has failed on many fronts, he said, making changes to a plan seeking to break the country out of cycles of violence was far better than swinging to another extreme.
He said he planned to vote for Cepeda, placing the candidate鈥檚 push to protect Colombia鈥檚 biodiversity and expand access to education over bold promises to unravel the country鈥檚 deeply entrenched conflict. That would be something Morales said he thinks is 鈥渋mpossible鈥� to do in just four years of a president’s term.
鈥淭he solution to this conflict isn鈥檛 aggressive confrontations. It will only end in more bloodshed,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 so difficult because it鈥檚 either dialogue or arms, and an internal conflict isn鈥檛 good for anyone.鈥�
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