A Voice for the Voiceless

By Ricky Zamora
Impunity Watch Reporter, South America

BOGOTA, Colombia – While Colombia has made efforts to combat unlawful killings, its security forces continue to be implicated in such acts.

Colombia, long plagued by armed conflict and the deadly drug trade, is no stranger to human rights violations.  While the country has taken steps to reduce unlawful killings, it has been an uphill battle against decades of unlawful killings committed with virtual impunity.

Recently, Professor Philip Alston, UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary, or arbitrary executions, reported that the rate of impunity for alleged killings by Colombian security forces may be as high as 98.5%.

An investigation led by Alston revealed that while these killings are not committed pursuant to official policy, many victims were murdered by the military, often for soldiers’ personal benefit or profit.  In fact, within the military, success was equated with ‘kill counts’ of guerrillas and promoted an accountability-free environment.

The investigation revealed that while Colombia’s efforts to reduce such killings include dismissal of senior military officers and the monitoring of military activity by the UN, they appear to be ineffective.

This indicates that current efforts are undermined by the very policies set forth to reduce unlawful killings.  Alston reported that there is an “alarming level of impunity for former paramilitaries.”

He added that “The vast majority of paramilitaries responsible for human rights violations were demobilized without investigation, and many were effectively granted amnesties. Today, the failure in accountability is clear from the dramatic rise in killings by illegal armed groups composed largely of former paramilitaries.”

Alston believes that “unless the Government ensures effective investigation and prosecution of killings by security forces, it will not be able to accomplish the goals it seeks to achieve and family members deserve justice. Colombian society and the international community need to know that security operations are lawful, or they will not be considered legitimate.”

This problem is not merely a threat to those typically vulnerable to guerrilla exploitation – the poor and ignorant.  In fact, human rights defenders, trade unionists, and other rights activists have fallen victim to the guerillas, paying with their lives.  This, then, tends to cause grave instability not only in Colombia’s remote areas, but everywhere, including the political arena, Alston added.

The Rapporteur did, however, commend the Colombian government for the part is has done; namely, that it is open to external suggestions for reform and willing to open itself to international scrutiny of its security policies.  This, he noted, is especially important as it sets an example for neighboring states to embrace the notion of transparency in regards to their security policies.

Professor Alston was appointed UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial executions in 2004 and reports to the United Nations Human Rights Council and the General Assembly. He has had extensive experience in the human rights field, including eight years as Chairperson of the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, principal legal adviser to UNICEF in the drafting of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and Special Adviser to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. He is Professor of Law and Faculty Director of the Center for Human Rights and Global Justice at New York University School of Law.

For more information, please see:

Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights – UN Expert finds progress, but also pattern of unlawful killings and ongoing “serious problems” with Colombia’s Security Policies – 27 May 2010

UN News Centre – Colombia takes steps on killings but security forces still culpable – 27 May 2010

Huffington Post – Colombia Commits “Crimes Against Humanity” as Free Trade Pacts Are Debated – 13 May 2009