Colombian Rebels Asked to Cease Fire for 2014 Vote

A former senator who has frequently served as a mediator with the FARC said Thursday she will ask the rebel group to declare a unilateral ceasefire during Colombia's 2014 elections.

"We could move forward suggesting a unilateral ceasefire to the FARC, as they did during Christmas last year,... so that the elections can truly take place peacefully," former senator Piedad Cordoba told RCN radio.

Legislative elections are scheduled to take place in March, followed by a presidential vote in May.

Cordoba, who has mediated the release of several FARC hostages, said she was optimistic the rebels would agree to the proposal.

"We'll give it a try as we have on other occasions," she said.

"In this case, it seems very important that the peace process not become entangled with electoral interests."

After 11 months of negotiations in Havana, the Bogota government and leftist fighters have reached agreement on just one key issue -- land reform -- with progress stalled on four other agenda items, notably how the FARC will give up their weapons and enter the political process.

At the start of the peace talks in November 2012, the Marxist rebels unilaterally declared a ceasefire for two months but lifted it after the government of President Juan Manuel Santos refused to reciprocate.

"It is important for people to vote but it's even more important for people to see what it means to have peace, no more deaths," Cordoba said.

The FARC, or Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, has been fighting the state for nearly half a century and is the largest guerrilla group in Colombia with about 8,000 fighters.

The rebels suggested earlier this week they would be willing to pause the peace talks during the elections if the government requested it.