Public Declaration
Victims of Paramilitarism Demand Complete Truth, Justice and Reparation
CSN-Madison, February 20, 2003
In light of the actions that the National Government is carrying out with the paramilitaries, under the pretenses of an "Exploratory Commission," the Permanent Committee for The Defense of Human Rights - CPDH - demonstrates it's position to the Colombian authorities and national and international public opinion.
1. The Application of Law 418/97 Cannot Be Allowed to Harm The Right To Recur to Justice
Although Law 782 of 2002, amendment to Law 418 of 1997, suppressed the political character of the organizations at the margin of the law to move ahead on "dialogues, negotiations, and agreements", making way for the "negotiation of justice" with any and all criminal organizations, its proceedings and results cannot disrespect human rights nor get around the effective application of International Humanitarian Law since it would not only harm the Constitutional regime but it would also constitute an instrument of the "legalization" of impunity.
Nevertheless, the Government just expedited Decree 128 on January 22, 2003, meant to concede amnesty and pardon to those who "have aims to incorporate themselves into legality", giving rise to impunity for their crimes. On this issue, the Minister of Defense expressed that the measure will not benefit those who have committed crimes against humanity, reducing such a definition to those investigations now being carried out. The Minister forgets that the great majority of the crimes committed by paramilitaries are unknown to judicial system and those that have been brought to light, present serious judicial flaws due to threats against witnesses and judicial officials.
The humanitarian catastrophe that Colombia suffers goes above and beyond the current judicial administration. That is why, on repeated occasions, human rights organizations have demanded the urgent confirmation of a Truth Commission, that after an exhaustive investigation, determines crimes against humanity and war crimes, and names those responsible and subjects them to a guaranteed judgment. Only in this way, will the Government assure the maintenance of a just order as an essential goal of the Colombian government and materialize in a complete fashion the universal rights of victims to truth, justice and full reparation for the harm caused by the perpetrators of crimes against humanity and infractions against humanitarian law.
2. Negotiations With the AUC Hide Governmental Responsibility in the Deployment of the Paramilitary Strategy
Paramilitarism is a strategy effected since the second half of last century, by diverse national governments as a bastion of counterinsurgency struggle and as a mechanism of repressive social control of vast social sectors that were in disagreement with the political and economic conditions of the country.
As a strategy of governability, paramilitaries stemmed from Decree 3398 of 1965, expedited under a state of siege, being incorporated to the permanent legal system through Law 48 of 1968. Later on new legal measures attempted to give paramilitarism a wider scope (Law 356 of 1994 and 684 of 2000), but were declared unconstitutional by the Constitutional Court, because they considered them in violation of human rights and the essential principles of the Colombian state.
As a method of counterinsurgency, paramilitaries built itself up under the shadow of the Armed Forces (many of their officials entered the ranks of the AUC), as shown by many court decisions of Colombian justice and international human rights protection organisms, receiving in addition substantial and permanent financing from drug traffickers, and national and international businessmen. It is enough to look back on the investigations of soldiers like Farouk Yanine Diaz, Luis Antonio Meneses Baez ("Ariel Otero"), Rodrigo Quinonez, Alvaro Hernan Velandia, among others, in diverse crimes perpetrated by paramilitarism, and the proof brought against General Rito Alejo del Rio by various witnesses. In light of this, paramilitaries have not carried out a rebellion against the Government, nor have they been its opponent, they have been an unconditional ally, which makes the "negotiations" between the government and the paramilitaries, two associates in the same cause, seem quite strange.
In light of this, behind the "confidentiality" of the conversations between the Government and the paramilitaries, underlies not only the impunity for their crimes (Decree 128 of 2003) but also the cover up of administrative and criminal responsibility that is held by officials and institutions of the government for their actions or inactions, as well as hiding their legalization by manner of the peasant military service and the informant network.
This "confidentiality" also hides the lack of compliance with minimal conditions such as a cease-fire and respect for the civilian population, as are demonstrated by recent aggression against indigenous communities on the Panamanian-Colombian border, Micoahumado (Bolivar), Meta and Arauca.
3. Peace Policies Must Be Public
We don't understand how Dr. Uribe Velez and his parliamentary coalition demanded transparency from the Pastrana administration when it was moving forward with dialogues with the insurgency, and today are silent before the imminent legalization of impunity in favor of paramilitarism.
Peace policies should be public and root themselves in the recognition of conflict (that is, the political character of the opponent), in the political solution of its causes, in respect to human rights and humanitarian law, and the administration of justice. Just as Amnesty International has pointed out, national reconciliation and the achievement of peace cannot be the fruit of a process held behind closed doors that excludes victims and society in general, to concede amnesty to those responsible for crimes against humanity.
4. We agree with Dismantling The Paramilitaries, but by Clarifying their Crimes and Administering Justice
In carrying out their goals, paramilitaries have committed hundreds of crimes against humanity leaving thousands of victims all throughout the nation. Among their victims we remember Doctors Hector Abad Gomez and Jesus Maria Valle, Presidents of the Permanent Committee for the Defense of Human Rights in Antioquia and other defenders of human right such as Elsa Alvarado, Mario Calderon, and Josue Giraldo; opposition leaders like Jaime Pardo Leal, Bernardo Jaramillo, Jose Antequera, Manuel Cepeda, Carlos Pizarro and Oscar William Calvo; Jorge Ortega, vice-president of the CUT (labor union federation), and hundreds of unionists, Ivan Villamizar, ex Defender of The People for Norte de Santander, the indigenous leader Quimi Domico, and so many men and women victimized and massacres like that of the Honduras and La Negra ranch in the Uraba region, Chengue, El Salado, El Naya, Mapiripan, and the Catatumbo region.
We also remember the attack on Wilson Borja and the hundreds of people tortured and disappeared after detention by Government security officials or by paramilitaries informed by them, as happened with Miguel Angel Diaz, Amparo Tordecillas, and Nidia Erika Bautista.
Colombia requires as a component and support of the Peace Process, a Truth commission to indicate those responsible for serious human rights violations and infractions against international humanitarian law. This implies, in the case of paramilitarism, individualizing the responsibility of institutions, officials and businessmen in the deployment of the paramilitary strategy with the goal of subjecting them to justice under respect for the fundamental right of due process.
For the consolidation of a Peace Process, the Government must dismantle the counterinsurgency paramilitary strategy, clarifying and passing judgment on its crimes and guaranteeing the right of victims and the society in general to truth, justice and reparation for crimes committed under the auspices of the paramilitaries.
To do this, the Colombian Sate and particularly the National government, should take up and implement the recommendations formulated by the Inter-American Human Rights Commission ad the UN Human Rights Commission on repeated occasions, as well as the mechanisms for overcoming impunity proposed by national and international organizations of experts, among them, the Commission of Notables formed during the previous government.
CRIMES AGANST HUMANITY COMMITTED BY PARAMILITARIES ARE UNPARDONABLE!
Permanent Committee for the Defense of Human Rights
Bogotá, February 5, 2003