Colombia's leading daily El Tiempo reported Wednesday that the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, runs a training school for some 400 rebels in Venezuela. Citing an unidentified report from the Colombian army, the newspaper also said that the National Liberation Army, or ELN, has a camp in Venezuela that it uses as an air base and hideout for kidnap victims. Venezuelan Foreign Minister Roy Chaderton denied the report, saying Colombian officials would have contacted Venezuelan authorities by now if it were true. Chaderton said he believed someone provided false information to the press.
On Thursday, a Venezuelan opposition politician claimed he has a report by Venezuela's Environment Ministry confirming the existence of a FARC camp in Sierra de Perija. The report says the camp has a water tank, a cafeteria for 50 people and a dormitory, Fernando Villasmil, president of the legislature of western Zulia state, said in an interview with Union Radio. Environment Ministry officials did not immediately return calls seeking comment.
Earlier in the week, Chaderton said his country would not declare Colombian rebels terrorists because that would make it harder for Venezuela to help broker any future peace agreement in the civil war. Chavez has condemned rebel bombings and kidnappings as "acts of terrorism." Caracas and Bogota are considering calling a meeting between Chavez and Colombian President Alvaro Uribe to discuss relations, which have been rocky for years. Many Colombians believe that the Venezuelan government is sympathetic to the leftist rebels, and some have even accused Venezuelan authorities of harboring rebels.
Chavez denies supporting rebels.***
Panama has also branded the FARC a terrorist group.
But Brazil, Ecuador and Venezuela have separately rejected Uribe's request, arguing that they want to remain ''viable mediators'' in the event of future peace talks in Colombia.
They have agreed to condemn ''terrorist actions,'' but not to brand the FARC as a terrorist group. Ecuador's foreign minister, Nina Pacari, was even quoted as making the ridiculous assertion that labeling the FARC as terrorists would amount to ''intervening'' in Colombia's internal affairs.
Not surprisingly, the FARC was elated. In a banner headline on its official website, the FARC boasted on March 9 that ''neighboring countries refuse to take part in the war carried out by Uribe and [President] Bush.'' It added, ``Ecuador refuses to define the FARC as terrorists. Brazil and Venezuela had done so earlier.”***