The four were employed by British company Emerald Energy, part of the China-based Sinochem Group. They were seized on June 8, 2011. Colombian officials said they had no doubt that FARC was behind the kidnappings.
Colonel Carlos Vargas, police chief in the southern Colombian state of Caqueta, said the four were released in good shape in a rural area of San Vicente del Caguan, a FARC bastion.
The hostages were turned over on Wednesday night to the International Committee of the Red Cross by unidentified men dressed in civilian clothes, the committee’s delegation in Colombia said.
Authorities identified the freed men as Tang Guofu, 28, Zhao Hongwei, 36, Jian Mingfu, 46, and Jiang Shan, 24. They said Jiang was the translator.
The rebels announced in February that they were halting all kidnappings and insisted they held no more captives.
Colombian Defense Minister Juan Carlos Pinzon accused the rebels of kidnapping the four Chinese.
Pinzon accused the FARC of being “mendacious and traitorous”, saying, “They have no respect for the Colombian people or the international community, who they compulsively deceive.”
The rebels and the Colombian government are in the midst of peace talks to end five decades of armed conflict that have claimed about 200,000 lives, displaced many more and caused millions in material losses.
XINHUA―AP―CHINA DAILY
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