The leader of the FARC rebel group has released a video calling for peace negotiations with the Colombian government.
The footage of Guillermo Leon Saenz, alias "Alfonso Cano," was shown at a four day peace convention in the Colombian city of Barrancabermeja, along with a letter from the rebel leadership. It was also posted on the website of news agency Anncol.
Saenz expressed his group’s desire to negotiate, saying “We believe in a political solution, we believe in dialogue.”
Criticizing the current administration, the rebel leader said that President Juan Manuel Santos had “promised to leave behind the hatred that characterized the previous eight years of the government. That promise was forgotten.”
Santos has stated that dialogue between the government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia - FARC) is only possible if the guerrillas lay down their arms and renounce kidnapping.
See original video below, or for a Reuters report with parts of the speech dubbed into English, click here.