By Prensa Latina
Bogota : The Colombian Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC) has announced that it has released three of its hostages who will be handed over to Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez or any other representative of his choice.
In a signed release here Tuesday, the rebel group said “the order of the release of Clara Rojas, her son Enmanuel and Consuelo Gonzalez have already been issued and they would be handed over to President Chavez or any person nominated by him to receive the freed”.
The release also apologised to detainees’ families and to Chavez and Senator Piedad Cordoba, whose efforts for a humanitarian exchange was called off by the Colombian government.
The FARC has been holding hundreds of hostages, including former presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt, a dual French-Colombian citizen, and three US military contractors.
In the seven-point note, the FARC, while rejecting a proposal for a peace meeting with the Colombian government, reiterated the demand that Florida and Pradera provinces in southwest Colombia be demilitarised for 45 days in order to reach a humanitarian agreement and to work out a political solution to the armed conflict.
The statement appreciated Chavez’s mediation efforts for a prisoner swap and said: “Annulling the facilitator’s gesture was an act of diplomatic barbarism against the legitimate leader of a brother state and against the Venezuelan people”.
The FARC note also expressed appreciation of French President Nicolas Sarkozy and the Latin American leaders for facilitating the task that “will end the long wait of the families of the prisoners of both parties for meeting their dear ones”.
Established in 1964 as the military wing of the Colombian Communist Party, the FARC is Colombia’s oldest, largest, most capable, and best-equipped Marxist insurgency. The FARC is governed by a secretariat, led by septuagenarian Manuel Marulanda (popularly known as “Tirofijo”) and six others, including senior military commander Jorge Briceno. The FARC is organized along military lines and includes several urban fronts.