Colombia ELN rebels begin talks

Garcia Marquez has written about Colombia's wars in his novels

Leaders of Colombia's second-largest rebel group have begun talks with the government to see if they can enter into a formal peace process.

Both the left-wing ELN group and the government said they were optimistic about talks in Cuba although the rebels denied that they were suing for peace.

Colombian writer Gabriel Garcia Marquez is co-hosting the talks with three European states present as observers.

Leftist rebels have been fighting the Colombian government for 40 years.

Tens of thousands of civilians are believed to have been killed in the conflict.

Greeting rebel and government representatives, Mr Garcia Marquez, a Nobel prize-winner, said "they should be ashamed if this time they don't reach anything".

Demands

The Havana talks were announced last week, after a meeting between Colombia's peace commissioner, Luis Carlos Restrepo, and ELN leader Francisco Galan.

Galan is serving a 30-year sentence for rebellion, terrorism and kidnapping but he was allowed to leave jail for three months in September in the hope that he would convince the rebels to begin talks.

THE ELN Formed by intellectuals in 1965 Inspired by Cuban Revolution About 4,000 members Mainly carries out kidnappings and attacks on infrastructure Listed by US and Europe as terror group

Similar talks held in 2003 collapsed after failure to agree on a framework for negotiations.

It is thought that President Alvaro Uribe's government will insist on a ceasefire, while the rebels will demand that basic social issues be resolved.

"Our main concern at this time is to gain trust," Mr Restrepo said on Friday. "Colombia can't take any more setbacks."

Formed in the 1960s and inspired by the Cuban Revolution, the ELN is thought to have some 4,000 active members. The group is on US and European lists of terrorist organisations.

Antonio Garcia, an ELN spokesman, said the rebels need to be persuaded that negotiations were worthwhile.

"If you have to explain that it is possible to build peace, it's because the troops believe that perhaps the conditions aren't there," he told reporters.

Colombia's largest rebel group, the Farc, has so far refused to negotiate with the government and has yet to respond to recent moves by Mr Uribe.

Earlier this week, he gave in to rebel demands for a demilitarised zone so that talks on the fate of hostages could be held.

Mr Uribe - who is expected to run for re-election next year - has already reached agreement with right-wing paramilitary groups, which currently are in the process of demobilising.