GUARANTORS ASK ELN FOR CEASE-FIRE, HOSTAGE

C O N F I D E N T I A L BOGOTA 001145 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/03/2016 TAGS: PGOV PTER CO SUBJECT: GUARANTORS ASK ELN FOR CEASE-FIRE, HOSTAGE RELEASE; PLAN TO EXPAND GUARANTOR GROUP, WANT U.S. CONTACT REF: BOGOTA 860 Classified By: Ambassador William B. Wood Reason: 1.4 (b,d) -------------- Summary -------------- ¶1. (C) GOC-ELN civil society guarantor Moritz Akerman said the guarantors sent the ELN a proposal February 2 that would require the guerrillas to "suspend definitively" all kidnappings and release all hostages within 90 days. In return, the proposal provides that the GOC would allow an ELN negotiating team freedom of movement in Colombia and perhaps overseas. Akerman said he had planned to visit Caracas to present the proposal to ELN military commander Antonio Garcia, but Garcia asked him not to do so because Venezuelan President Chavez had asked Garcia to maintain a low profile in Caracas and an Akerman visit would have attracted media attention. According to Akerman, the ELN wants to move the talks from Cuba for propaganda and financial reasons, as well as to avoid pressure from the Cuban intelligence services. The Cubans told the ELN that it should not conclude a deal with the GOC without FARC approval, Akerman reported. The agenda for the February 17-28 session in Havana remains unclear, although the ELN might ask to travel to Norway, Switzerland, and Spain during this period. Akerman said the Norwegians are considering financial support for the process but want to be sure the ELN is "irreversibly" committed to peace. Akerman said the guarantor group would add at least four prominent Colombians to counter concerns it was too leftist. He said the ELN wants to open a direct channel to the U.S. End summary. -------------- -------------- GUARANTORS MAKE CEASE-FIRE AND HOSTAGE PROPOSAL TO ELN -------------- -------------- ¶2. (C) GOC-ELN civil society guarantor Moritz Akerman told D/Polcouns February 2 that the guarantors had delivered a cease-fire and hostage proposal to the ELN and would discuss it with ELN military commander Antonio Garcia beginning February 9 in Havana. According to Akerman, the proposal would require the ELN to announce a "definitive suspension" of kidnappings and a commitment to release all ELN hostages within 90 days. In return, the guarantors propose that the GOC allow the ELN to form a "negotiating commission" of about 5 people, who would have the freedom to travel within Colombia (and perhaps overseas) on peace process-related issues. (Akerman was vague about whether the guarantors also gave the proposal to the GOC.) Akerman said the ELN's reaction to the proposal would be a test of its sincerity. Akerman would not be concerned if the ELN countered with its own proposal, but would be disappointed if it rejected the proposal out of hand. Akerman said his initial plan was to travel to Caracas on February 2 and present the proposal to Garcia personally, but Garcia told him not to do so because Hugo Chavez wants Garcia to maintain a low profile in Venezuela. -------------- -- ELN ANXIOUS TO MOVE TALKS FROM CUBA, WANT MONEY -------------- -- ¶3. (C) Akerman said the ELN wants to move the talks out of Cuba, in part for propaganda and financial reasons and in part because the Cuban intelligence services are putting pressure on the ELN not to conclude a deal with the GOC without FARC approval. In Akerman's view, the ELN is interested in the publicity and money-raising possibilities that being in a European country might offer. They want to explore the possibility of altering the ELN's EU designation as a terrorist organization. Akerman said the ELN would be satisfied with an EU statement at the appropriate time -- following a cease-fire and hostage release -- that alluded to "beginning the process of reexamining" the terrorist designation rather than an outright reversal of the decision. Akerman confided that Garcia had expelled Ramiro Vargas from the ELN's negotiating team because Garcia learned that Vargas was informing the Cubans and the FARC of developments. The Cubans told the ELN on more than one occasion it should not reach an agreement with the GOC without FARC approval. Akerman said Vargas' removal had elevated Francisco Galan to the second most important figure in the ELN team, a development that Akerman regarded as positive. ¶4. (C) According to Akerman, the Norwegians recently told the ELN they would consider financial support for the process only if they were convinced the ELN was "irreversibly" committed to peace, and the Norwegian Foreign Ministry's Acting Director General for Latin America, Herbeth Linder, recently visited Colombia and met with the ELN. Linder and Peace Commissioner Restrepo's deputy Eduardo Herrera told polcouns the same thing a few days earlier (reftel). Akerman expects Norwegian officials to visit again in the near future to further discuss ELN financial requests. Akerman said the ELN has three principal financial needs: monthly payments for up to 5,000 guerrillas (GOC estimates of ELN strength are well below this figure); a fund for ELN political activities; and subsidies for the ELN negotiating team's travel and other incidental expenses. In Akerman's view, at some point the ELN's financial requirements have to be addressed. He noted that demobilized paramilitaries have been assisted with government stipends, but only in the context of their demobilizations. -------------- TALKS RESUME FEBRUARY 17, AGENDA UNCLEAR -------------- ¶5. (C) Akerman said the talks resume in Havana February 17 and are scheduled to last until February 28. The ELN has been making some substantive proposals (e.g., on the roles of the accompanying countries) but the GOC has not responded. Akerman understands the GOC wants to secure a cease-fire before moving forward on a substantive agenda. Akerman said he expects the ELN to request permission to travel during the February 17-28 session, to Norway to discuss financial issues, to Switzerland to address humanitarian and hostages concerns, and to Spain to address political matters. -------------- COMPOSITION OF GUARANTOR GROUP CHANGING -------------- ¶6. (C) Akerman said only four of the five guarantors would travel to Havana February 9; guarantor Daniel Garcia-Pena has dropped out of the group because he is running for political office in the March congressional elections. (If Garcia-Pena loses, Akerman said, he might return as a guarantor.) The guarantors are expanding from the original five to at least eight. Akerman reported that four prominent Colombians have agreed to serve as guarantors but will not be incorporated immediately: former foreign minister Maria Emma Mejia; Director of El Colombiano newspaper Ana Mercedes Gomez; Father HoracioOrango; and industrialist Ricardo Correa. All have accepted the guarantors' offer to join them (Father Orango is awaiting approval from Church authorities, while Maria Emma Mejia will travel to Havana February 9 as a "friend" of the process). Akerman explained that there was a sense the guarantor group was too leftist, hence the effort to include other sectors of society. He said the ELN's Francisco Galan is pleased to see the expansion, despite a private letter from guarantor Alejo Vargas to Antonio Garcia warning against the "bourgeois" and "elitist" nature of the newcomers. According to Akerman, the ELN would like to see human rights activist Gloria Flores join the guarantors. Akerman said Flores is known to be very close to the ELN. For their part, the guarantors will not ask her to participate unless one of the four newcomers backs out, Akerman said. -------------- ELN INTERESTED IN OPENING CHANNEL TO U.S. -------------- ¶7. (C) Akerman reported that the ELN wants to open a direct channel to the U.S., perhaps by sending a letter to Ambassador Wood. Antonio Garcia asked Akerman to help draft the letter, he said. Akerman understands that the ELN would suggest in the letter areas of possible cooperation with the U.S. in the fight against narcotics trafficking. (Gabriel Garcia Marquez, who has contact with the ELN, has sought a meeting with the Ambassador.) WOOD