February 29th 2008, by Kiraz Janicke - Venezuelanalysis.com
Caracas, March 1, 2008
(venezuelanalysis.com) - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has called for
international mediation group to negotiate a humanitarian accord in neighboring
Colombia, after a successful Venezuelan led humanitarian mission secured the
release of four former legislators held by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of
Colombia (FARC), on Wednesday.
During a telephone
call to state owned VTV Thursday, Chavez indicated that France, Ecuador, Brazil
and Argentina as well as the Organization of American States support such a
move. It is "essential" that Venezuela is part of any international mediation
group, because "the FARC have demonstrated that they don't believe in anyone
else," he added.
In a communiqué,
released minutes after the hostage handover the FARC said this would be the
last unilateral hostage release. The FARC reiterated their longstanding call
for a military free zone as a precondition for any further negotiations for a
humanitarian exchange of 40 remaining high profile hostages for 500 imprisoned
guerrillas. However, the Colombian government immediately rejected this
proposal.
Chavez said the desire
for peace by the majority of Colombians and that the pressure of world opinion
would force Uribe to change his position.
"President Uribe is
going to have to change his position. Everybody is in agreement except for
Uribe, " he declared.
Speaking at a press
conference in Caracas on Thursday night, the former Colombian legislators, Luis
Eladio Pérez, Jorge Gechem, Orlando Beltrán and Gloria Polanco, also spoke out
in favor of a military free zone to facilitate a humanitarian exchange.
"I publicly challenge
President Alvaro Uribe to demonstrate the success of his policy of democratic
security and clear the military from the municipalities of Pradera and Florida
and after 45 days the Armed Forces can recuperate this territory," Perez said
after his liberation. "The solution is political, Mr. President Uribe," he
repeated twice during the press conference.
"If you persist in the
foolishness of insisting on a military rescue you are going to receive, Mr
President Uribe, 40 or 50 corpses. It is absurd to think of a military rescue
with the conditions that we had in captivity. There would be a massacre," Pérez
stressed.
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