Colombia: Extrajudicial Executions to Be
Clarified
BOGOTA - Colombian military leaders asked
the legal system to clarify cases of
extrajudicial executions in which several
officers are involved, following a recent
court ruling that sparked a severe
controversy in the country.
In a joint statement the defense minister
Gabriel Silva and the commander of the
Military Forces General Freddy Padilla
insisted on the necessity of clarifying the
matter under investigation and the
punishment for the perpetrators of such
crimes.
This statement is known later than Wednesday
were released 17 soldiers implicated in the
disappearance and subsequent murder of
several youths who were presented as rebels
killed in combat.
The decision was made by the judge handling
the case, claiming expiration of detention
time without being given any judgments
against the officials, in line with a
defense request.
He said during the hearing while lawyers for
the three non-commissioned officers and 14
professional soldiers, who were assigned to
the Army Boyaca Battalion, used delaying
tactics during the process 99 days went by
since the prosecution filed the charge.
The releases in question caused a strong
rejection in the relatives of victims and
human rights organizations, before worries
that the crime goes unpunished, while the
militaries will continue to serve in the
army.
Last year during a visit to the country, the
UN special reporter Philip Alston said
extrajudicial killings are almost a routine
practice in Colombia in recent years.
Alston said at the time that false positives
are better characterized as cold-blooded
murder of innocent civilians and
premeditated for purposes of profit.
The reporter noted the incentive policy of
the government to the military who give in
bodies and arms of members of illegal armed
groups is the main factor that causes the
killings of civilians to pass them off as
guerrillas. |
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