“Consistency between words and deeds is the key factor to have the needed credibility,” said the editorial, which then reviewed the credibility of each one of the main institutions or groups in Colombia.

“Political parties are not credible since they are moved only by the quest for controlling power,” said El Pais, which also claimed that the government also lacks credibility “because it switches positions from one side to another without hesitation.”

The editorial argued that the Colombian Army is also not credible “because it says it supports peace talks but its generals express violent intentions.” The same is said about the rebel groups “who moan about peace but murder, kidnap, and destroy,” and about the paramilitaries, “who claim to support reconciliation, but attack peasants and local authorities.”

El Pais also repudiated the credibility of local authorities, industry leaders, and workers’ unions, and claimed that “the sin of Colombians is the lack of consistency, from which comes all of our social evils that prevent us from coming out of the black hole.”

The editorial said “there is still hope” because “the Catholic Church is consistent, because her members are respectful of the agreements they make with other institutions, because they give without expecting restitution, because they have a social commitment evident to everyone, because the clergy is morally and intellectually well-prepared, because they are not corrupt, because they work 24 hours a day, because they show the way and they lead.”

The editorial concluded that “the Church should be the coordinator of the peace process,” but for that, she needs “official recognition from all sides and the decision of some people to put aside their useless egoism.”

“That would bring a real solution,” El Pais added.

Meanwhile, the bishops proposed an international commission to investigate allegations by several priests that a rebel group administering a demilitarized zone has set up a “concentration camp.”

The bishops’ conference called for the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) to allow investigators into the 42,000 square kilometer region established by the Colombian government in 1998 as part of an effort to restart peace negotiations. FARC has been allowed to run the area as a virtual fiefdom, extracting onerous “war taxes,” conscripting men and boys into service as soldiers, and trafficking in drugs.

In separate statements, the Colombian military and government prosecutors both agreed with the charges made by the priests, claiming FARC was using the demilitarized zone to hold hostages, including women and children captured during guerrilla attacks.

Bishop Hector Julio Lopez of Granada suggested the commission could be composed of UN peacekeepers, Red Cross representatives, and members of the Colombian Attorney General’s office. However, FARC rejected the allegations and called its accusers “liars.”

Colombians in a northern region also protested the government’s plan to set up another demilitarized zone (DMZ) for a left-wing rebel group in advance of peace negotiations.

Residents of the Magdalena Medio region met with government negotiators, telling them they would not accept the zone for the National Liberation Army (ELN) rebels without a nationwide referendum. Maria Isabel Torres, a spokesman for the anti-DMZ movement, told local radio that lessons should be learned from the DMZ set up for FARC in southern Colombia.

The government of President Andres Pastrana negotiated the DMZ with ELN in April, but in May, thousands of business owners, farmers, and peasants blocked all roads leading into the region for 20 days in protest. Protesters refused to open up the roads until the government agreed to halt plans to withdraw troops and hear from residents through public meetings such as those conducted in June.