Statement Specifies Chávez for Handover
By Juan Forero
Washington Post Foreign Service
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
BOGOTA, Colombia, Dec. 18 -- Colombian guerrillas said Tuesday that they would hand over three hostages to Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, including an aide to French-Colombian politician Ingrid Betancourt.
In a statement mailed to Cuba's Prensa Latina news agency, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, said it would free Clara Rojas, her son Emmanuel -- who was born in captivity -- and Consuelo Gonzalez, a former member of Congress kidnapped in 2001. Rojas was the vice presidential running mate of Betancourt, who was kidnapped during her 2002 presidential bid, along with Rojas, and whose captivity has generated international interest.
Traveling in Uruguay, Chávez confirmed that he had received the FARC's offer.
"I had been alerted that the liberation could occur, or that the FARC could announce the liberation of a group of people," Chávez told reporters in Montevideo. "This seems to be a good Christmas gift, especially for the families of these people."
Chávez had recently been leading an effort to mediate the release of Betancourt and other hostages. But Colombian President ¿lvaro Uribe abruptly ended the negotiations last month, angering the hostages' relatives. The announcement Tuesday suggested Chávez had made progress in the talks.
In its statement, the FARC did not mention either Betancourt or the three American Defense Department contractors who have been held since their plane crashed in 2003. The plight of the hostages has taken on new resonance this year, especially since last month's public release of a long, angst-filled letter written by Betancourt to her mother.
In a statement that lauded Chávez's mediation efforts, the FARC said, "We accept your call to liberate Dr. Clara Rojas, her little one Emmanuel and Dr. Consuelo Gonzales de Perdomo as a sign of the unquestionable hope we had placed on your role as facilitator." The statement, dated Dec. 9, did not say when the three hostages would be released, or where. But the rebels said the handover would be made directly to Chávez or whomever he designates.
"The order to liberate them in Colombia has been made," the statement said.
The FARC also labeled "unacceptable" a proposal Uribe made Dec. 7 in a bid to free the hostages. In a speech in which he likened the rebels to Nazis, Uribe said his government would be willing to meet with rebel commanders in a specially demarcated swath of rural Colombia to negotiate an exchange of hostages for jailed rebels. The FARC, in its statement, again insisted on the demilitarization of two towns near the southern city of Cali, a demand Uribe has repeatedly rejected.
The Uribe government did not immediately respond to the FARC's statement Tuesday. But earlier in the day, the president, whose father was killed by guerrillas in 1983, sharply criticized the group for failing to provide proofs of life -- such as letters, pictures or videos -- of hostages held in clandestine jungle camps. The president also reiterated his call for foot soldiers in the rebel movement to desert with the hostages.
"If these guerrillas demobilize and bring out hostages, Dr. Ingrid Betancourt and other countrymen, those guerrillas will enjoy liberty as much as the hostages," Uribe said. "We will give them judicial benefits and a reward."
In Venezuela, the FARC pledge was good news for a government that has been reeling since it narrowly lost a referendum seeking approval for changes to the constitution. Interior and Justice Minister Pedro Carre¿o said Chávez 's role in mediating with the FARC should not be underestimated.
"There can be no sector, in Latin America or the world, that does not recognize President's Chávez's tireless and unwavering efforts to obtain peace in Colombia," Carre¿o said. He also said Colombia's government should "listen to these messages that the entire world has sent," a reference to calls for the Uribe administration to show flexibility in meeting FARC demands.
In Florida, Lynne Stansell, whose son Keith is one of the Pentagon contractors in FARC hands, said she was excited by the developments.
"We wish our son were one of the three, but we're very grateful the FARC has agreed to do this," she said by phone. Stansell said that she and her husband, Gene, had been exasperated when Uribe ended Ch¿vez's mediation efforts on Nov. 21.
The Colombians later charged that Ch¿vez had broken protocol in his role as mediator. The Venezuelan government reacted furiously, saying that Ch¿vez had been advancing and that the first hostages were due to be released before Christmas. Venezuela's foreign minister, Nicolas Maduro, accused the Colombians of bombing rebel forces and creating other obstacles for Ch¿vez.
"It looks as though he was advancing," Stansell said.
View all comments that have been posted about this article.