In 2016 a landmark peace agreement between Farc, a violent leftist militia, and the Colombian government saw more than 10,000 fighters surrender their weapons and begin their transition to civilian life.
With that ended five decades of insurgency that killed more than 200,000 people and displaced seven million. Millions of Colombians rejoiced, as did international observers; Colombian president Juan Manuel Santos was rewarded with a Nobel peace prize.
And yet the Colombian presidential elections this week – the first since the peace deal was signed – have thrown its future into peril. The conservative front-runner Ivan Duque has vowed to cripple the deal by removing amnesty for Farc members. He faces a run-off next month with former M-19 guerrilla Gustavo Petro, who would preserve the agreement.
The election results reflect the severe polarisation of a country still recovering from a brutal conflict.
But more profoundly, they speak to the fragility of peace accords that can halt violence but cannot heal the wounds that conflict has inflicted. Blame and vengeance do not disappear when a peace deal is signed. Even in recent history's most successful reconciliations, such as the Good Friday agreement in Northern Ireland, hostile sentiment lingers on.
Bringing peace in conflict requires the perfect alignment of desire and incentive and hence agreements are imperilled by a change in leadership, on either side.
With its electorate united only in its distrust of establishment politicians, Colombia is set for political transition. Whoever is victorious in the second round on June 17 should to their best to ensure a lasting peace. Only then can the scars of a gruesome conflict begin to fade.
Colombia has made excellent progress in recent years. Terrorist attacks, kidnappings and homicides have declined substantially while sectors like mining, technology and agriculture have swelled. This month, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development approved Colombia as a new member, while it will next week become a Nato global partner, the first Latin American country to do so.
Nevertheless, revenge killings of Farc commanders in traumatised rural communities reveal the fragility of the peace. From Basque separatists Eta in Spain to Farc fighters in Colombia, prolonged peace requires effective rehabilitation of rebels. In Colombia it might also necessitate reparations or the return of land stolen during the conflict.
Such conditions are difficult to achieve in a generation, let alone a couple of years. Earlier this year, Colombians revealed themselves unready to accept Farc as a serious political force when the group received just 0.5 per cent of the vote in parliamentary elections.
Yet peace is precious and could collapse altogether should Mr Duque win next month’s election and follow through on his threats.
Peace agreements are never perfect, but they are invaluable. Successive leaders should be wary of ditching hard-fought peace accords. They should choose dialogue over destruction.
Paris Agreement
Article 14
1. [The Cop] shall periodically take stock of the implementation of this Agreement to assess the collective progress towards achieving the purpose of this Agreement and its long-term goals (referred to as the "global stocktake")
2. [The Cop] shall undertake its first global stocktake in 2023 and every five years thereafter
BIG SPENDERS
Premier League clubs spent £230 million (Dh1.15 billion) on January transfers, the second-highest total for the mid-season window, the Sports Business Group at Deloitte said in a report.
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid
When: April 25, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Allianz Arena, Munich
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 1, Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
Director: Nag Ashwin
Starring: Prabhas, Saswata Chatterjee, Deepika Padukone, Amitabh Bachchan, Shobhana
Rating: ★★★★
England 12-man squad for second Test
v West Indies which starts Thursday: Rory Burns, Joe Denly, Jonny Bairstow, Joe Root (captain), Jos Buttler, Ben Stokes, Moeen Ali, Ben Foakes, Sam Curran, Stuart Broad, Jimmy Anderson, Jack Leach
World ranking (at month’s end)
Jan - 257
Feb - 198
Mar - 159
Apr - 161
May - 159
Jun – 162
Currently: 88
Year-end rank since turning pro
2016 - 279
2015 - 185
2014 - 143
2013 - 63
2012 - 384
2011 - 883
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League quarter-final (first-leg score):
Juventus (1) v Ajax (1), Tuesday, 11pm UAE
Match will be shown on BeIN Sports
Teaching your child to save
Pre-school (three - five years)
You can’t yet talk about investing or borrowing, but introduce a “classic” money bank and start putting gifts and allowances away. When the child wants a specific toy, have them save for it and help them track their progress.
Early childhood (six - eight years)
Replace the money bank with three jars labelled ‘saving’, ‘spending’ and ‘sharing’. Have the child divide their allowance into the three jars each week and explain their choices in splitting their pocket money. A guide could be 25 per cent saving, 50 per cent spending, 25 per cent for charity and gift-giving.
Middle childhood (nine - 11 years)
Open a bank savings account and help your child establish a budget and set a savings goal. Introduce the notion of ‘paying yourself first’ by putting away savings as soon as your allowance is paid.
Young teens (12 - 14 years)
Change your child’s allowance from weekly to monthly and help them pinpoint long-range goals such as a trip, so they can start longer-term saving and find new ways to increase their saving.
Teenage (15 - 18 years)
Discuss mutual expectations about university costs and identify what they can help fund and set goals. Don’t pay for everything, so they can experience the pride of contributing.
Young adulthood (19 - 22 years)
Discuss post-graduation plans and future life goals, quantify expenses such as first apartment, work wardrobe, holidays and help them continue to save towards these goals.
* JP Morgan Private Bank
How the bonus system works
The two riders are among several riders in the UAE to receive the top payment of £10,000 under the Thank You Fund of £16 million (Dh80m), which was announced in conjunction with Deliveroo's £8 billion (Dh40bn) stock market listing earlier this year.
The £10,000 (Dh50,000) payment is made to those riders who have completed the highest number of orders in each market.
There are also riders who will receive payments of £1,000 (Dh5,000) and £500 (Dh2,500).
All riders who have worked with Deliveroo for at least one year and completed 2,000 orders will receive £200 (Dh1,000), the company said when it announced the scheme.
Top 10 most competitive economies
1. Singapore
2. Switzerland
3. Denmark
4. Ireland
5. Hong Kong
6. Sweden
7. UAE
8. Taiwan
9. Netherlands
10. Norway
COMPANY PROFILE
Company: Eco Way
Started: December 2023
Founder: Ivan Kroshnyi
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Electric vehicles
Investors: Bootstrapped with undisclosed funding. Looking to raise funds from outside
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Yango Deli Tech
Based: UAE
Launch year: 2022
Sector: Retail SaaS
Funding: Self funded
LEADERBOARD
-19 T Fleetwood (Eng); -18 R McIlroy (NI), T Lawrence (SA); -16 J Smith; -15 F Molinari (Ita); -14 Z Lombard (SA), S Crocker (US)
Selected: -11 A Meronk (Pol); -10 E Ferguson (Sco); -8 R Fox (NZ) -7 L Donald (Eng); -5 T McKibbin (NI), N Hoejgaard (Den)
Overall head-to-head
Federer 6-1 Cilic
Head-to-head at Wimbledon
Federer 1-0 Cilic
Grand Slams titles
Federer 18-1 Cilic
Best Wimbledon performance
Federer: Winner (2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012)
Cilic: Final (2017*)