'World's oldest guerrilla' dies of heart attack at 78

Published on Sunday 25 May 2008 23:56

COLOMBIA'S defence ministry yesterday announced that the enemy it has battled for 44 years is finally dead.

However, Pedro Antonio Marin, the rebel leader better known as Manuel "Sureshot" Marulanda, died of a heart attack in March. The world's oldest guerrilla was 78.

The rebel leader founded the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc) in 1964 and taunted presidents and generals alike, while building his army from a handful of cousins and friends into force of, at its height, 16,000 fighters, funded by drugs-trafficking.

While he had little schooling, he was an avid reader of all things military, of tactics and strategy. His jungle library was an impressive sight.

"This is the biggest blow to this terrorist group because 'Sureshot' is the one who held them together," said Admiral David Moreno. Over the past five years, Farc has been pushed on to the defensive thanks to the US-backed military offensives of the president, Alvaro Uribe.

He has made the destruction of the rebel army the cornerstone of his government.

Mr Uribe's father was killed by Farc in a botched kidnapping attempt and many believe the president's war against the rebels smacks of a personal crusade for revenge.

Farc has long been prepared for the death of "Sureshot" and the rebel army's seven-man ruling body, the Secretariat, had designated "Alfonso Canoa" (real name Guillermo Leon Saenz), the group's top ideologue, to succeed him.

There are doubts Cano will be able to replace "Sureshot" effectively. Alejo Vargas, a university professor and conflict analyst, said: "Marulanda was a mythic founder who gave cohesion to the rebels."

The death of "Sureshot" is just the latest blow to the once mighty Farc. On 1 March, the Colombian military bombed a Farc base in Ecuador, provoking a crisis that is still unresolved.

However, the Colombian government felt it was worth it as Raul Reyes, a member of the Secretariat and "Sureshot's" right-hand man, was killed.

Just a week later, another member of the Secretariat, "Ivan Rios", was killed by his bodyguard, who chopped off his head to claim over 500,000 reward money, duly paid by the government.

However, nobody believes Farc is going to disappear. Still up to 10,000-strong and flush with cocaine funding, the rebels still dominate up to a quarter of Colombia.