LOS POZOS, Colombia -- Colombian officials and members of the
                  country's largest rebel group are trying a novel approach to peace talks.

                  After months of stalemate, the two sides are inviting Colombia's 40 million
                  citizens to present their proposals for ending the country's 35-year-old civil
                  war. The leftist rebels have been battling successive governments, calling for
                  an end to poverty and political corruption.

                  A small, wooden church deep in the Amazon jungle provided the backdrop
                  for the announcement of this unusual experiment in democracy.

                  Marxist rebels from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia -- known
                  as FARC -- met face-to-face with government officials. Their meeting was
                  broadcast live on television.

                  It was a bizarre sight: Some 10 senior FARC rebel commanders, clad in
                  olive combat fatigues and clutching assault rifles, huddled opposite a similar
                  number of government negotiators, including Cabinet ministers and top
                  lawmakers.

                  The program Saturday was the first in a series of public meetings that are
                  aimed at injecting new life into the negotiations.

                  When the peace meetings begin in January, ordinary Colombians will be
                  encouraged to attend or to ask questions by telephone, fax or e-mail. A
                  17-member committee of government and rebel delegates will hear the
                  proposals and then pass them on to the main negotiating table.

                  "Anyone who wants to share their opinions can come and freely explain
                   their ideas," said FARC commander Ivan Rios.

                  'The armed confrontation affects us all'

                  The meetings will be held in Los Pozos, a village of 400 people, which
                  lies deep inside the jungle, 185 miles southwest of the capital, Bogota. The
                  area was cleared of government troops and police officers more than a year
                  ago to allow the peace talks.

                  Both sides were enthusiastic about getting ordinary Colombians to help end
                  the civil war that has plagued the country for decades.

                  "The armed confrontation affects us all. That's why the peace process must
                  include everyone," said Rios.

                  The government's chief negotiator, Victor Ricardo, agreed. "This is a way to
                  let us hear what dreams people have for the country. This is a space to put
                  the people into the peace process."

                 Settlement still far away, both sides say

                  The 15,000-strong FARC has been fighting successive governments since
                  1964, but since January, the rebels have participated in slow-moving peace
                  talks with the government of President Andres Pastrana.

                  Both sides have warned they are still far from a settlement.

                  With an assault rifle propped before him Saturday, chief rebel negotiator
                  Raul Reyes blamed the conflict on free-market policies.

                  "If we don't revise this economic model, it will be very difficult to advance at
                  the negotiating table," he said.

                 Hopes for Christmas truce are dashed

                  Government officials had hoped the rebels would use Saturday's meeting to
                  agree to a Christmas cease-fire. But those hopes were dashed as FARC
                  representatives again rejected a government truce offer.

                  Despite that setback, the government's interior minister is optimistic about
                  the peace talks.

                  "We have it within us to build a peace," said Nestor Humberto Ramirez.
                  "Those participating on the part of the government and those participating on
                  the part of FARC are going to give the strongest guarantees that this
                  participation (from the public) will be profitable."

                  The country's civil war has claimed more than 35,000 lives in 10 years.

                           The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.