 |
| Humberto de la Calle, chief of the Colombian government delegation, takes part in a press conference under the framework of peace talks with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), in Havana, capital of Cuba, on Feb. 10, 2013. (Xinhua/Joaquin Hernandez) |
HAVANA, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- The Colombian government Sunday asked the Armed Revolutionary Forces of Colombia (FARC) guerrilla group to stick to a previously agreed agenda as the two sides continued peace talks aimed at ending nearly five decades of fighting.
"We are not here to talk about what is divine and what is human. There is a clear track for the main issues of these talks and we are not going to stray from it. And we hope the FARC abide by what we agreed," chief government negotiator and former vice president Humberto de la Calle said.
At the end of the latest round of talks in Havana, Cuba, the negotiator read a statement saying the government was not open to including fresh issues on the table.
He added the rebels have brought up new areas of concerns, such as mining and ending the construction of hydroelectric mega projects, which were not included before.
"As long as we stick to the agreed agenda, these talks can progress at a good pace ... to reach the agreements that will let us put an end to the conflict," he said.
The two sides came back to the negotiating table in October last year, for the first time in 10 years, around an agenda that includes agrarian reform and land distribution, laying down weapons, helping the rebels return to society or politics, reparations for victims of the fighting and drug trafficking, a reported fund source of the FARC.
The talks have been regularly rocked by continued fighting between the rebels and the government troops, with significant deaths on both sides.
The FARC said on Sunday that they were ready to release two police officers and a soldier that they captured in January in southwestern Colombia.
"The order has been given ... We are ready to receive the International Red Cross Committee and the delegation of Colombians to release the three uniformed" fighters, FARC negotiator Ricardo Tellez said before walking into the talks.
Asked how the talks were progressing, Tellez said the two sides were still tackling the agenda's opening issue, rural development.
The Colombian government and the FARC renewed their talks in Havana, Cuba on Jan. 14, mainly focusing on agrarian reform and rural development.
The conflicts between the government and the country's largest rebel group have claimed 600,000 lives since 1964.
|
