FARC vows in letter to release hostages

BOGOTA, Colombia (CNN) -- Three captives held for years by Colombian rebels could be freed by the end of the year, including an aide to Colombian Sen. Ingrid Betancourt and the woman's 3-year-old son, according to a statement.

Betancourt, kidnapped along with campaign manager Clara Rojas during her campaign for the Colombian presidency five years ago, is not among the hostages the rebels said they would release.

The statement, released by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, and obtained by CNN from Managua, Nicaragua's, La Prensa newspaper, said hostages Rojas, her son Emmanuel and Consuelo Gonzales de Perdomo "should be handed over to President [Hugo] Chavez or his designees."

The handover could prove problematic, however, in light of bad blood between Colombian President Alvaro Uribe and Chavez, president of Venezuela. Uribe had asked Chavez to help secure the release of the hostages, hundreds of which are held by FARC and the National Liberation Army (ELN).

But last month, Uribe effectively fired Chavez, saying he broke protocol by communicating directly with Uribe's top general. Chavez has since called Uribe a "liar" and said that FARC was ready to release prisoners, but that Uribe's interference stalled those plans.

On Tuesday, Chavez, who is in Montevideo, Uruguay, said he had received the FARC statement.

In the FARC statement, the group criticizes Uribe for ending Chavez's role, along with that of Colombian Sen. Piedad Cordoba. Chavez and Cordoba were go-betweens to assist with the hostages' release.

"In reaction to the infamous act of the Uribe government and as an apology to President Chavez, to Senator Piedad Cordoba and to the families of the prisoners, we accept their call to free Dr. Clara Rojas, her little boy Emmanuel and Dr. Consuelo Gonzales de Perdomo as an unquestionable sign of the hope that we've placed in their role as facilitators," the statement said. "They should be handed over to President Chavez or his designees. ... The order to free them has already been given in Colombia."

The statement was dated December 9, but published by media organizations Tuesday, after they received it.

The move by FARC is seen as an effort to get Chavez back on board as a mediator, as the Venezuelan president is more sympathetic to the rebels, as well as a public relations move at the holidays. Moreover, it puts the ball back in Uribe's court.

Rojas' son Emmanuel was born in captivity, a result of a relationship with a guerrilla foot soldier.

Last month, the Colombian government seized five videotapes from suspected FARC members, showing a number of hostages, including Betancourt and three American contractors. The tapes were the only recent evidence that the hostages may still be alive. Four of the five tapes showed recording dates in late October, while the fifth was branded January 1, 2007.

In addition to Betancourt and the contractors, several kidnapped members of Colombia's security forces appear in the tapes.

Earlier this month, French President Nicolas Sarkozy appealed to FARC to release Betancourt, who also holds French citizenship. She was kidnapped in 2002 while campaigning for the Colombian presidency and has become a cause celebre in France. E-mail to a friend

CNN's Karl Penhaul contributed to this report.

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