Former Colombian governor Alan Jara arrived at a provincial airport Tuesday after being released by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) in a rural place in southern country, Xinhua reported.
Jara, 51, who had been held by the FARC since July 15, 2001, was welcomed by his wife Claudia Rugeles and his son Alan Felip at the airport of Villavicencio, 90 kilometers southeast of Bogota. They hugged each other after the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and Colombian Senator Piedad Cordoba finished the delivery.
"I'm free, free. I had rested for seven years and a half in the jungle and now I will go to work," Jara told reporters after he stepped out of a helicopter.
According to Jara's relatives, Jara was in good health condition despite he had been kept as a hostage for such a long period.
Cordoba said that she will continue working for the release of other hostages, especially Sigifredo Lopez, who will be released on Thursday.
"The work for the releases will continue. I have to thank the FARC for having fulfilled their words about the hostages release," she said.
"We will continue the release process, which makes Colombians believe again that political and negotiated solutions could achieve peace in Colombia," Cordoba added.
An estimated 700 people are currently being held by the FARC, Colombia's largest guerilla group, including a group of about 20 high-profile hostages "exchangeable" for its members in prison.