The resumption of the talks was welcomed as a positive development by former presidential candidates Horacio Serpa of the opposition Liberal Party and Nohemi Sanin of the governing Conservative Party. Serpa and Sanin said the government had already made ''significant concessions,'' and that it was now up to the insurgents to take steps to demonstrate that they were truly interested in coming up with solutions to the armed conflict, which has dragged on for nearly five decades. Tuesday's meeting was preceded by a demonstration by around 1,500 peasant farmers, who marched to the site of the talks to express their support, urge the government for solutions to the agricultural sector's troubles, and condemn a recent FARC attack on the eastern oil-rich municipality of Cravo Norte. The renewal of talks was also backed by Organisation of American States Secretary-General Cesar Gaviria, who said Colombia enjoyed the support of all nations of the Americas. FARC admitted it had committed the ''grave error'' of murdering the three U.S. activists in late February.
Analysts say the incident dealt a severe blow to the rebel group's image.