CAT/C/COL/CO/4
Independence of the Office of the Public Prosecutor
13.
The Committee expresses its desire to see the independence of the Public Prosecutor
of the Nation strengthened and respected. It is also concerned that prosecutors attached to
the Office of the Public Prosecutor are placed within military facilities, since this could
compromise their independent functioning (articles 2 and 12 of the Convention).
The Committee urges the State party to ensure that the Public Prosecutor is
appointed on the basis of criteria that guarantee the selection of a professional capable
of acting in total and full independence. The Committee also recommends that the
practice of placing prosecutors within military facilities be discontinued.
Demobilization and de facto amnesty
14.
The Committee is seriously concerned at the lack of an appropriate legal framework
for establishing the criminal liability of demobilized members of illegal armed groups,
including approximately 30,000 paramilitaries. The legal rights granted by Act No. 975 of
2005 (Justice and Peace Act) and Decree 128 of 2003 do not conform to the principle of the
proportionality of the sentence and the lack of convictions points to a de facto amnesty in
contravention of international human rights obligations. The Committee is seriously
concerned that, despite the systematic violence highlighted in versión libre accounts and the
statement in Act No. 975 of 2005 that “the provisions of this Act shall be applied in
accordance with constitutional norms and the international treaties ratified by Colombia”,
there has to date been no conviction for serious human rights violations. The Committee
points out that the adoption of Act No. 1312 of July 2009 on the application of the principle
of opportuneness leads to impunity if the waiver of prosecution is applied without regard to
human rights standards, and represents a violation of the victim’s right to full redress
(articles 2, 4, 12 and 13 of the Convention).
The Committee urges the State party to comply with its obligations under the
Convention and other international instruments, including the Rome Statute of the
International Criminal Court, and investigate and punish crimes of torture with
appropriate penalties which take into account their grave nature. In this regard, it
points out to the State party, with reference to its general comment No. 2, adopted in
2007 (CAT/C/GC/2), that the Committee considers that amnesties or other
impediments which preclude or indicate unwillingness to ensure prompt and fair
prosecution and punishment of perpetrators of torture or ill-treatment may violate the
principle of non-derogability.
Acquiescence and complicity with illegal armed groups
15.
The Committee is concerned at the widespread complicity of public servants and
elected representatives with illegal armed groups, as evidenced by the high number of
prosecutions for collusion with these crimes. It expresses great concern that Supreme Court
judges have been threatened and have had to have recourse to the Inter-American Human
Rights System for interim measures of protection. The Committee also expresses its dismay
that Supreme Court judges have been harassed, placed under surveillance and have had
their telephone calls tapped by intelligence agents of the Administrative Department of
Security (DAS) (art. 2 of the Convention).
The Committee notes the efforts of the State party to prosecute public servants and
elected representatives for complicity with illegal armed groups and urges the State
party to guarantee fully the integrity and security of persons working in agencies
concerned with the administration of justice. The Committee urges the State party to
take immediate steps to discontinue the harassment and surveillance of judges by
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