Colombia deal rout stuns all negotiators

‘No' supporters celebrate at a rally following their victory in the referendum on a peace accord to end the 52-year-old guerrilla war between the FARC and the state in Bogota, Colombia. Pic/AFP

Bogota: A stunning referendum defeat for a peace deal with leftist rebels leaves Colombians with no Plan B to save an accord that sought to bring an end to a half century of hostilities.

Instead of winning by an almost two-to-one margin on Sunday as pre-election polls had predicted, those favouring the accord with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia lost by a razor-thin margin, 49.8 percent to 50.2 percent for those against the deal.

Both President Juan Manuel Santos and leaders of the FARC, after four years of grueling negotiations, vowed to push ahead, giving no hint they want to resume a war that has already killed 220,000 people and displaced 8 million. "I won't give up. I'll continue search for peace until the last moment of my mandate," Santos said in a televised address appealing for calm.

But it's not clear how the already unpopular Santos can save the deal after the stunning political defeat. He ordered his negotiators to return to Cuba to confer with FARC's top leaders, who watched the results with disbelief after ordering drinks and cigars at Club Havana. "The FARC deeply regret that the destructive power of those who sow hatred and revenge have influenced the Colombian people's opinion," the FARC's top commander, a guerrilla known as Timochenko, said.

The loss was even more shocking considering the huge support for the accord among foreign leaders.