Relatives of Colombian hostages are in Venezuela today to seek the ongoing involvement of President Hugo Chavez in securing their release. The former presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt and more than a dozen others have been held by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia since 2002. Colombian President Alvaro Uribe suspended Chavez’s mediation last month after accusing him of improperly contacting the military. Chavez has denied the charges. On Tuesday, Bentancourt’s mother, Yolanda Pulecio, criticized Uribe.

Yolanda Pulecio: “I came to thank President Chavez and Senator Piedad Cordoba for all the efforts they’ve made. I’m very hurt over the very abrupt and very rude way in which President Uribe clogged everything up, but it’s not the first time he’s clogged everything up.”