Colombian Vice President Angelino Garzon said Monday that the government will not allow regional body UNASUR to mediate in the conflict with the FARC, as the guerrilla group proposed.
Garzon said that the Colombian government prefers to negotiate directly with the FARC. He added that for the government to consider a dialogue, the FARC must demonstrate that they are willing to seek peace.
“What the Colombian government demands of the guerrilla is that they free all the hostages without condition, that they cease the activity of kidnapping, and that of planting land mines, and they cease the recruitment of children, which is a modern expression of slavery. Moreover they must be able to demonstrate to the Colombian public that violence is senseless,” Garzon said.
The vice president’s comments follow a request by the FARC to discuss its perspective on the Colombian conflict at a UNASUR meeting.
The FARC is considered a terrorist organization by the U.S. and Europe and has frequently been condemned by human rights organizations for the recruitment of children and the use of landmines.