STATEMENT BY THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE COMMISSION CONCERNING THE SITUATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS IN COLOMBIA

"The Commission on Human Rights welcomes the fact that the permanent office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Bogotá, during its first year of work, has enjoyed the cooperation of State and governmental institutions and has been able to conduct its activities in Colombia without any impediment. It also welcomes the fact that it has available to it an analytical and detailed report on the situation of human rights in Colombia,
by the permanent office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Bogotá, as well as a document containing the observations of the Government of Colombia.

"The Commission notes the readiness of the Government of Colombia, as expressed in its observations, to give the conclusions and recommendations of the report the most serious consideration in view of their importance and, on this basis, urges the Government of Colombia to advance, with the support of the office, in the implementation of the recommendations contained in the report as soon as possible.

"The Commission welcomes the renewal of the agreement between the Government of Colombia and the High Commissioner for Human Rights extending the mandate of the permanent office in Bogotá until 30 April 1999. The Commission considers of greatest importance the work which the office has been undertaking in the promotion of respect for human rights, which may facilitate reconciliation between Colombians and the search
for peace. It believes that the office, which is tasked with assisting the Colombian authorities in developing policies and programmes and the promoting and protecting of human rights and observing violations of human rights in the country, performs a vital role in bringing the human rights situation in Colombia into focus. The Commission expects that the activities of the human rights office in Bogotá will continue to contribute to improving the human rights situation in Colombia, and to promote a climate of trust between the Government and all sectors involved in the conflict, encouraging a process of constructive dialogue involving NGOs and other sectors of civil society, and to prevent violations of human rights and international humanitarian law.

"While encouraging the work of the special commission set up by the Government of Colombia for the analysis, follow-up and implementation of the recommendations of international human rights bodies, the Commission considers that progress has been made in the implementation of the recommendations, in particular those of the thematic rapporteurs and working groups, but is still not sufficient to improve the situation of human rights in
Colombia.

"In this context, the Commission is deeply concerned at the gravity and scale of the violations of human rights and breaches of international humanitarian law reported to the office in Bogotá.

"The Commission is deeply preoccupied by the persistence and intensification of the internal armed conflict, which entails increasingly serious and continuous abuses and violations of human rights and the application of international humanitarian law mainly by 'paramilitary' groups (also known as 'self-defence' groups or grupos de autodefensa) and guerrillas, but also by certain State agents.

"The Commission urges all parties to make serious efforts to negotiate a peaceful conclusion to the internal armed conflict. In this context, it acknowledges the actions of the Government of Colombia, of many State institutions and numerous organizations of civil society aimed at making progress in the peace process, in particular the creation of the National Peace Council, the 10 million votes for peace cast by the citizens of Colombia heeding the call of the non-governmental movement 'Mandate for Peace', the authorizing of regional governors to promote humanitarian agreements with guerrilla groups, and the growing openness of Colombia to international participation in the search for negotiated solutions to armed confrontation.

"The Commission acknowledges the package of important policies and measures adopted and set in train by the Government of Colombia in the field of protecting and defending human rights and its willingness to cooperate with the office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Bogotá and the Commission's special rapporteurs and working groups, and its readiness to continue and reinforce them. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the
Commission remains deeply concerned that the situation of endemic violence and the situation of internal armed conflict affecting many parts of the country have resulted in serious consequences for human rights.

"The Commission stresses the background analyses contained in the report of the office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Bogotá, according to which two political events of the highest importance, as far as their influence on the human rights situation is concerned, occurred in Colombia in 1997, that is the electoral process which will culminate in June 1998 with the election of a new President, and the broad debate in Colombian society about the possibility of a peaceful outcome to the present armed conflict.

"The Commission acknowledges that the Government of Colombia has taken steps for the application of humanitarian standards in the conflict, and welcomes its continued cooperation with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the facilitation of its humanitarian activities in the country.

"The Commission is deeply concerned at the growing and harmful contribution of 'paramilitary' groups to the increasingly violent situation in much of Colombia and to the deterioration of the internal armed conflict, and at the involvement of those groups in more than half of the violent crimes attributed to the parties to that conflict. This is reflected notably in the alarming number of massacres of non-combatants and the dramatic increase in
numbers of displaced persons. The Commission is similarly concerned at the fact that members of the 'paramilitary' groups sometimes act in conjunction with, or with the acquiescence of members of the armed forces or police.

"The Commission welcomes the reduction in the number of human rights violations attributed to the armed forces and the police, but is concerned that the measures taken by the authorities have not yet succeeded in ensuring that any support for the activities of 'paramilitary' groups is investigated and punished. It notes, however, that there has been an increase in human rights violations committed by 'paramilitaries'. It notes the measures taken by the Government and State investigative authorities to put an end to 'paramilitary' groups, and urges all the authorities to intensify these measures to the maximum until the results are fully satisfactory, including by instituting legal proceedings against any State agents who cooperate with the 'paramilitaries'.

"The Commission expects that the armed forces of Colombia will implement the intention expressed to the office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Bogotá to dismiss from service all those in their ranks who may be implicated in crimes against humanity.

"The Commission condemns terrorist and other violent acts by guerrilla groups which violate international humanitarian law. It calls on the guerrilla groups to respect norms of international humanitarian law and especially condemns killings and all attacks on the civilian population, indiscriminate massacres, kidnapping and threats to kill nationals and foreigners, hostage-taking, the widespread use of anti-personnel landmines, and
the recruitment of children.

"Similarly, the Commission condemns electoral sabotage by the guerrilla groups, through the kidnapping and murder of candidates for election to public posts, as well as the murder of various mayors who have not yielded to their pressure. It urges guerrilla groups to release mayors whom they are keeping prisoner and to allow them to exercise, democratically, the mandate granted by the citizens who elected them. At the same time, for humanitarian reasons, it urges the guerrilla groups to release all the soldiers in their possession and all the persons they have kidnapped in contravention of international humanitarian law, including the 30 Colombian and 6 foreign citizens held by the guerrilla group Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (FARC).

"The Commission welcomes the recommendations of the Colombian Constitutional Court on 7 November to impose strict controls on the weapons held by the 'special private security and vigilante services' (the so-called Convivir groups). It also welcomes the measures adopted by the Government of Colombia to regulate the establishment and functioning of those bodies, particularly prohibition of their establishment in zones of conflict. Furthermore, it encourages the disbanding of those groups which have failed to comply with the
recommendations. It calls upon the Colombian Government to ensure the required resources to closely monitor the activities of all such groups in order to guarantee their effective control and ensure that they remain within the law.

"The Commission recognizes the legislative progress made in Colombia, the most recent examples of which are the ratification of the Inter-American Convention to Prevent and Punish Torture and the rules which regulate the recruitment of those under 18 to compulsory military service.

"The Commission calls upon the Government of Colombia to promote the conclusion of the process of reform of the military penal code, in accordance with successive recommendations made by United Nations human rights mechanisms, by excluding from military courts serious human rights violations and in particular crimes against humanity, by separating the functions of the executive and the judiciary, and by introducing criminal
indemnification proceedings (la parte civil).

"The Commission calls for the urgent promotion and adoption of the draft law to put an end to forced disappearances and genocide and to increase the punishment for acts of torture, as well as adoption of other more effective measures to prevent and terminate acts of enforced disappearances, in accordance with article 3 of the Declaration on the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, and in accordance with recommendations made by United Nations human rights mechanisms.

"The Commission recognizes the fact that a draft law has been presented to Congress to advance the abolition of the regional justice system.

"The Commission urges early agreement in the Colombian Congress upon and effective implementation of the draft laws mentioned in the three preceding paragraphs.

"The Commission remains concerned at the unacceptable level of impunity, in particular concerning abuses by State agents that continue to fall under the jurisdiction of military courts. It calls upon the Government of Colombia to take steps to address this problem as a matter of urgency. It welcomes the important advances made in a number of cases of gross human rights violations by the Human Rights Unit in the Office of the Procurator General which is investigating and indicting State agents, guerrillas, and members of 'paramilitary'
groups responsible for violations of human rights or humanitarian law.

"The Commission urges the Government of Colombia to strengthen and consolidate its support, through all institutions of the State, of all those who promote the defence of human rights. It is deeply concerned at the apparent increased threat to many human rights defenders, as demonstrated, inter alia, by the killing of the two researchers of the Centre for Research and Popular Education in May 1997, and the murder of the Chairman of
the Human Rights Commission in Antioquia in February. It is also deeply concerned that some members of the State intelligence organizations consider human rights defenders to be linked to guerrilla groups, and sometimes seek to have them investigated by the judicial authorities through the use of witnesses linked to the intelligence organizations. It calls upon the Colombian Government to give special importance to the safety of human rights
workers. It notes the adoption in July 1997 of the Presidential Directive on recognition of the work of human rights advocates, and other measures taken by the Government to improve this situation and to protect human rights defender organizations.

"The Commission acknowledges the efforts made by the Government of Colombia to address the problems of the internal displacement of large numbers of Colombian citizens, which is largely symptomatic of the internal conflict. However, it remains deeply concerned about the increasing numbers of internally displaced persons in Colombia which calls for firm action by the Colombian authorities, perhaps in coordination with international bodies. It takes note with satisfaction of all the measures taken by the Government of Colombia to provide solutions to this problematic situation and expects those measures to become established and implemented effectively. In this context, it welcomes the understanding reached recently between the Government of Colombia and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees on establishing a liaison office in Bogotá. It urges the Government of Colombia to continue to seek effective means to prevent such displacements, to take all necessary measures to protect the life and physical integrity of internally displaced persons, and to ensure security for organizations supporting them.

"The Commission requests the High Commissioner for Human Rights to present to it during its next session a detailed report containing an analysis by her Office of the situation of human rights in Colombia, in accordance with the provisions of the agreement between the Government of Colombia and the High Commissioner for Human Rights on the operation of the permanent office in Bogotá."