FARC asks Colombian government to begin talks with another rebel group

The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) on Tuesday urged the government to begin peace talks with another rebel group, the National Liberation Army, according to an announcement released in Havana. The announcement was made a day after the two rebel groups said their leaders had met to discuss ways of ending armed conflict in Colombia. Pablo Catatumbo, a member of the FARC delegation, said peace talks with the ELN do not necessarily have to be at the same negotiating table as that between FARC and the government in Havana. "We are talking about incorporating the ELN into the talks, so it can be part of the conversation," said Catatumbo before Tuesday's negotiations with the government. The decision on whether peace talks with the ELN will be held at the same table or separately is in the hands of the ELN commanders and the government, said Catatumbo. About its meeting with the ELN, the FARC leadership said in a statement that it was pleased with the encounter and that the painful misunderstanding among the revolutionaries has been cleared up. "A frank discussion between both rebel organizations was held in an environment of camaraderie, which ratified our unified horizon and represented a historic event of enormous value," said FARC. "We will do everything we can to make the talks between our sister organization and the Colombian government begin effectively," added the statement. The ELN has not taken part in the FARC-government peace talks that began in November in Havana, though the group expressed its desire to do so. In May, FARC and the government reached agreement on the first of five central negotiating points, which was agrarian reform and rural development. The negotiations have moved to a second point -- FARC's transition to a political party once the rebels lay down their weapons. The other points are reparations for victims of the fighting, disarmament, and the FARC's links to drug trafficking.