Kidnapped Colombian 'has child with captors'

BOGOTA, Colombia - A Colombian politician taken hostage more than four years ago by leftist rebels has had a child by one of her captors in a secret jungle prison camp, according to a book to be published today.

Colombian news programmes were filled with reports about the baby boy on Monday, with commentators speculating about the effect the existence of a child might have on attempts to swap rebel hostages for guerrillas held in government jails.

The book, Latest News From the War by journalist Jorge Botero, tells the story of Clara Rojas, a single 41-year-old lawyer kidnapped by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, while campaigning for the vice presidency.

Botero, known for his close contacts with the FARC, said he confirmed the existence of the child, now about two years old, with top FARC commanders.

"I hope that this child can become a symbol of the tragedy that we have been living through," Botero told reporters, referring to Colombia's decades-old guerrilla war, in which thousands are killed every year.

"The child is not the result of rape or something forced. He is the result of a relationship," Botero said.

When she was kidnapped in February 2002, Rojas was running on the ticket of presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt, a French-Colombian national who was taken hostage at the same time and remains in FARC hands.

President Alvaro Uribe has accepted a proposal by France, Spain and Switzerland aimed at breaking a deadlock with the FARC over prisoner swap talks. Although the plan appeared close to meeting the rebels' earlier demands for talks to begin, the FARC said there would be no hostage swap with Uribe.

"This child ... could increase international pressure on the government to reach a hostage exchange deal," said Carlos Jaramillo, a Bogota-based security analyst and former government peace negotiator.

"But the chances of reaching a deal remain low because the FARC has no intention of negotiating with Uribe," he added.

The rebels also hold three civilian US Defence Department contractors seized in 2003. Rojas is the only journalist to have interviewed the Americans in captivity.

The FARC says it is fighting for socialism in a country with deep divisions between rich and poor, but even mainstream leftist politicians say the group has scant popular support.

Uribe, popular for his US-backed military crackdown on the rebels, is expected to win re-election in May.

- REUTERS