BOGOTA: Colombia's Marxist FARC rebels on Tuesday rejected an invitation by opposition leader and former President Alvaro Uribe to discuss the latest peace accord and see if more modifications to the complex deal are possible. Uribe, who spearheaded the push to reject the original peace accord in an October plebiscite, is not happy with the revised version and wants deeper changes.
But the rebels declined the ex-president's offer.
"Uribe governed badly, corrupted and bled Colombia during eight years and never wanted peace. He wanted to defeat the FARC, but he couldn't," FARC commander Pablo Catatumbo said on his Twitter account.
The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia and the government have spent four years in Havana hammering out an agreement to end a 52-year war that has killed more than 220,000 people and displaced millions.
The original accord, signed in September, was rejected by a razor-thin margin as too lenient on the rebels.
Uribe and other political movements which voted against the original deal met with the government late on Monday to go over the new document.
The government has said it will make no more changes to the deal. Uribe wants rebel leaders to be banned from holding public office and for them to be jailed for crimes.
"We are willing to talk with the government and the FARC about such changes. We propose that we take advantage of FARC leaders being in Bogota," Uribe's opposition party said in a statement.
Humberto de la Calle, the government's chief peace negotiator, said that despite the opposition's continued rejection of the agreement, President Juan Manuel Santos and FARC leader Rodrigo Londono should go ahead and sign the document.
Santos won the Nobel Peace Prize last month for his efforts to end the war.
No date has been given for the signing - though FARC leaders arrived in Bogota from Cuba on Monday - and Santos has still not said how the new accord will be approved, but it appeared likely it will be ratified in Congress rather than via another plebiscite.
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