Colombia's rebels present new plan to speed up peace negotiations

The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) presented a new working plan here Thursday to speed up the ongoing peace negotiations with the government.

FARC negotiator Joaquin Gomez said the plan will "provide an additional driving force" to the agreement signed by the government and the FARC in Havana, Cuba to de-escalate the fighting between them. In the agreement, the guerrilla group promised a unilateral cease-fire from July 20.

Gomez told reporters that the plan will allow negotiations to progress and improve the way it addresses issues.

"The most urgent thing now is closing the configuration of the Commission for Clarification of Truth, Coexistence and Non-Repetition. We must do everything necessary to conclude this before the end of November," he said.

Early in June, the two parties agreed to create the commission, conceived as an independent, extrajudicial and impartial mechanism, which would start to operate once a peace treaty is signed.

The government delegation, headed by former Vice President Humberto de la Calle, maintained its usual silence before the start of each session of negotiations.

The two sides have reached partial agreements on three of the points on the agenda: land issues, political participation and combating drug trafficking.

Reparations for victims of the conflict, which is considered the most complicated issue, is now under discussion. Endi