The Governing Council of the Inter-Parliamentary Union,

Referring to the outline of the case of Mr. Oscar Lizcano, Mr. Jorge Eduardo Gechen Turbay, Mr. Luis Eladio Pérez Bonilla, Mr. Orlando Beltrán Cuéllar, Ms. Gloria Polanco de Lozada and Ms. Consuelo González de Perdomo, all (former) members of the Colombian Congress, as contained in the report of the Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians (CL/175/11(a) R.1), and to the resolution adopted at its 174^th session (April 2004),

Recalling that the six persons were kidnapped by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) between 5 August 2000 and 23 February 2002 and are still in their hands,

Recalling that, although President Uribe had on many occasions stated his readiness to embark on negotiations with FARC for the sake of a humanitarian agreement, there did not in fact appear to be any progress in bringing both sides to the negotiating table,

Considering that, according to the Colombian High Commissioner for Peace in his communication of 27 September 2004, the Government made an offer on 18 August 2004 to release unilaterally 50 imprisoned FARC members who are being prosecuted or have been sentenced for rebellion, on condition that upon their release they either go abroad or engage in a project under the rehabilitation programme of the Government; that these options will be provided under the guarantee of France and the Colombian Church; the communication suggests that immediately thereafter FARC would, under the guarantee of Switzerland, France and the International Committee of the Red Cross, release the kidnapped politicians and members of the police; that, although FARC rejected the offer, consultations are reportedly taking place to work towards a compromise acceptable to both sides,

Taking account of the information provided by the President of the Colombian Senate on 16 June and 27 September 2004 that the Colombian Congress, in the interests of providing security and monitoring reconciliation with FARC, established a special committee on the question of a humanitarian agreement; that the committee is composed of Senators Francisco Murgueitio Restrepo, José Renán Trujillo García, Dilia Francisca Toro, Samuel Moreno Rojas and Jairo Clopatofski, and started functioning on 27 August 2003,

1. Thanks the President of the Colombian Senate and the High Commissioner for Peace for their cooperation and the information provided;

2. Welcomes the recent steps to reactivate consultations between the Colombian Government and FARC; calls on both sides to take this opportunity and show resolve in pursuing the path of negotiation towards the speedy conclusion of a humanitarian agreement; wishes to be kept informed of any developments in this regard;

3. Renews its call on all IPU Member Parliaments with experience of peace and reconciliation processes, also involving securing the release of hostages, to place their experience at the service of the Colombian authorities with a view to assisting them in identifying and implementing an appropriate solution;

4. Notes with satisfaction that a parliamentary committee has been put in place to follow developments with regard to a possible humanitarian agreement; would greatly appreciate more information on its precise mandate and standing, in particular whether it is represented at the discussions between the Government and FARC, and clarification as to whether, since its establishment, it has maintained regular contacts with the families of those kidnapped and has adopted any reports and recommendations;

5. Requests the Secretary General to convey this resolution to the parliamentary authorities, including the aforesaid special committee, other competent authorities, the sources and other interested parties;

6. Requests the Committee to continue examining this case and report to it at its next session, to be held on the occasion of the 112^th Assembly (April 2005).

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