Juan Manuel Santos

Juan Manuel Santos

The peace maker

In seeking to end 50 years of guerrilla fighting, President Juan Manuel Santos is treading a fine political line, writes John Paul Rathbone

For much of his career, Juan Manuel Santos has waged war. Now, Colombia’s president is seeking peace. As he sits in the presidential palace in Bogotá, his tone is measured, his gestures controlled and his gaze calm from under slightly hooded eyes. It is the inscrutable mien of a practised poker player – which is fitting, because if politics is a poker game, Santos has recently gone all-in.

For the past 50 years, Colombia has been wracked by Latin America’s oldest guerrilla ...

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