Colombia’s FARC rebels freed three captive Chinese oil workers and their translator after holding them in jungle camps for more than a year, the defence ministry said today, an apparent goodwill gesture as the rebels seek to negotiate a peace accord to end five decades of war.
The captives, who worked for a contractor hired by United Kingdom-based Emerald Energy, were taken hostage by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, in mid-2011 as they were driving in southern Colombia. The captives were handed over to Red Cross workers late on Wednesday.
The release is the second act this week that could be seen as an olive branch to the government as the warring sides hammer out a five-point peace plan that may bring an end to a conflict that has left tens of thousands dead and millions displaced since it began in 1964.
At the start of talks in Cuba on Monday, the FARC called a unilateral ceasefire for two months.
The release was a result of collaboration between the Red Cross and the Chinese government, Vice Defence Minister Jorge Enrique Bedoya told reporters.
«The government provided all the help possible so that this (liberation) could develop without any problems. We are very happy that these Chinese citizens can return to their homes,» Bedoya said.
A decade-long government offensive against the FARC has pushed the rebels deep into inhospitable jungle territory, helping foreign and local oil companies explore territory that was once off-limits.
But the Marxist group has stepped up attacks against oil installations over the last year or so, bombing pipelines, kidnapping workers, and making it difficult for companies to maintain output levels.
Source: Buenos Aires Herald