Another hostage freed by Colombian rebels

Ex-governor Alan Jara was freed this afternoon after being held nearly eight years hostage by Colombia’s FARC guerillas. Jara rejoiced his liberation after being transported by a Brazilian military helicopter along with Senator Piedad Cordoba and a trio of Red Cross representatives. “I’m free!” declared Jara after he reunited with his wife and now-teenage son at the Villavicencio airport.

In a press conference shortly after he was freed, Jara thanked all those who helped in his liberation and also declared his support for the hundreds still held hostage. “You cannot change the country through kidnapping” said Jara in criticism of the FARC though he also emphasized that negotiations “are the only solution” to Colombia’s armed conflict.

Jara was the fifth hostage released this week by the FARC and appeared to be absent of the controversy surrounding the liberation of three policemen and a soldier on Sunday. Former lawmaker Sigifredo Lopez is expected to be freed this Thursday.

Could these series of liberations signal a change in the FARC’s strategy? According to csmonitor.com:

Camilo González, an analyst with the Indepaz peace studies group, said the rebels' decision to do this is part of a FARC effort to regain political relevance. "It is the
FARC's way of trying to recover some political initiative after a disastrous year," he said…

"They may have finally realized that it is politically counterproductive to hold civilians," (political analyst Gérson) Arias says...

But Mr. González argues that the concept of swapping civilian hostages for jailed rebels – which had been central to the FARC's strategy and negotiations for years – has lost relevance.

Image- El Espectador
Online Sources- The Latin Americanist, El Tiempo, RCN, AP, csmonitor.com, AFP