Colombian Defense Minister Gabriel Silva announced Tuesday that the government is fully prepared for the FARC’s planned liberation of hostages Pablo Emilio Moncayo and Josue Daniel Calvo.
“We have arranged that if they [the FARC] notify us 48 hours in advance [of the hostages’ release], we will have sufficient time to guarantee our compliance with their terms,” Silva said, following a meeting with International Committee of the Red Cross delegate Christophe Beney and Colombia’s High Commissioner for Peace, Frank Pearl, to finalize the details of the release.
Silva stated that “We are waiting on the protagonists [FARC], who have been stalling the process, and have played with the life and liberty of these people.”
Silva continued by demanding that the FARC “put humanity over politics.”
The terms of the release were announced on Monday by the FARC. Brazil will act as mediator in the liberation, providing transport and organizational support.
Negotiations over the hostages’ release have been ongoing for nearly a year.
Moncayo has been in FARC captivity since 1997, and Calvo since April last year. Both are Colombian soldiers.
In addition to the hostages, the FARC will also release the remains of policeman Julian Guevara, who died in 2006 after eight years in captivity.