Colombian authorities have released a video of the military commander and No. 2 man of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), Mono Jojoy (h/t Shane). He was responsible for kidnapping, murder, drug trafficking, and forcibly recruiting children for the FARC.

Here is the video, in Spanish. Notice the age of the FARC members:

I translated the video at Real Clear World (if you use this translation please credit me and link to this post). Mono Jojoy, whose real name was Víctor Julio Suárez Rojas, is addressing the members during a ceremony welcoming new recruits:

“If the comrades Marulata and Jacobo, for the political circumstances in this country, made the political decision to organize this guerrilla army, [it was] due to causes that justify the existence of this guerrilla.

“Because of that, being a guerrilla is the highest responsibility.

“What we do here it to shape, to improve the character, the thinking, of people coming from a capitalist society, a gossipy society. We, men and women who integrate this army, do it because we had no other opportunity, not because we are violent. We say, let’s talk, but they don’t pay attention. They want the peace of the kneeling, and that’s not us.

“We respect ourselves to be respected. We’re not going to spend 50 years to say that the armed struggle is useless.

“That’s what I wanted to tell you today. Thank you comrades.”

The speech itself is not meant to make sense in a logical way. Instead, Mono Jojoy wants to remind his audience that they are there to fight for whatever “causes that justify the existence of this guerrilla”, which remain unexplained (except for the desire to be respected), and for the sake of continuing a 50-year war.

That last part is almost ironic. Mono Jojoy was killed on Sept. 21 by the Colombian military during a raid on his terrorist camp. Following his demise, the computers found at the camp have revealed more information that will continue to bring down the FARC, including information on a Colombian senator with close ties to both the FARC and to Venezuela’s Hugo Chavez.

The “50 year armed struggle” is not over, but at least its leaders are getting what they deserve.

Cross-posted at Fausta’s blog