Distr.
GENERAL

E/CN.4/1998/16
9 March 1998

ENGLISH
Original: SPANISH


COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS
Fifty-fourth session
Item 3 of the provisional agenda

ORGANIZATION OF THE WORK OF THE SESSION

_Report by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights_

CONTENTS

_Introduction _

_I. THE NATIONAL CONTEXT _
_A. Constitutional system and international treaties ratified by
Colombia _
_B. The context of violence and internal armed conflict _
_C. The situation in 1997: electoral process and peace process _

_II. SITUATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN LAW _
_A. Main violations of human rights and international humanitarian law _
_B. Specific aspects of international humanitarian law _
_C. Economic, social and cultural rights _
_D. Particularly serious aspects of the situation of human rights and
international humanitarian law _

_III. FOLLOW-UP OF INTERNATIONAL RECOMMENDATIONS BY THE COLOMBIAN STATE
_

_IV. ACTIVITIES OF THE OFFICE OF THE UNITED NATIONS HIGH COMMISSIONER
IN COLOMBIA _

_V. CONCLUSIONS _

_VI. RECOMMENDATIONS _

_Introduction_

1. The Office in Colombia was established under the Agreement signed in
Geneva on 29 November 1996 by Mrs. María Emma Mejía Vélez, Minister for
Foreign Affairs of Colombia, and Mr. José Ayala Lasso, the then
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. This Agreement
establishes the Office's mandate and functions. *_(1)_*

The Office began work with the arrival of its Director in Colombia on
6 April 1997.

2. At its fifty-third session, the Commission welcomed the opening of
the Office and acknowledged the efforts carried out by the Government of
Colombia in the field of human rights and its willingness to cooperate
with the special rapporteurs and working groups. Nevertheless, it
reiterated its concern at the persistence of thousands of violations of
the right to life, the practice of enforced disappearance and torture,
the increasing involvement in the conflict of paramilitary groups and
the persistence of an alarming level of impunity. It likewise urged the
Government to continue to strengthen its support for all those who
promote the defence of human rights. At the same time, the Commission
urged the guerrilla groups to respect the norms of international
humanitarian law and to abandon the use of abduction, hostage-taking,
anti-personnel landmines, indiscriminate killings and all attacks on the
civilian population.

3. The Director is supported in her work by 6 experts on mission, a
legal adviser, a security officer and 10 persons performing
administrative and service functions. The Office's headquarters are in
Santa Fé de Bogotá. Its financing has been made possible by
contributions from the European Commission, Cyprus, Germany, Italy, the
Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. The
Colombian Government, for its part, has contributed by making available
the premises occupied by the Office.

4. The Office has been well received by the Government and by Colombian
society in general. As an example, the President of the Republic
received the Director days after her arrival in Bogotá and reiterated
his Government's support to the Office. Additionally, on 25 April 1997,
he issued Presidential Directive No. 05, in which all agencies of the
executive power, including the armed forces and the national police,
were informed of the Office's establishment and functions and were
recommended to collaborate with it. The Office has enjoyed the
cooperation of State and government institutions and has been able to
conduct its activities in Colombia without any impediment. 


*I. THE NATIONAL CONTEXT *

A. _Constitutional system and international treaties ratified by Colombia_

5. Under the existing Constitution, public power is exercised in
Colombia through three branches. The first is the executive, whose head,
the President of the Republic, simultaneously performs the functions of
Head of State, Head of Government and supreme administrative authority
and holds the post of Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces. The second
is the legislative branch, consisting of the Congress, a bicameral body
which performs the functions of making laws, exercising political
control over the Government and the administration, and amending the
Constitution. The third is the judicial branch, which is composed of the
Constitutional Court, the Supreme Court of Justice, the Council of
State, the Higher Council of the Judicature, the Office of the
Procurator-General of the Nation (_Fiscalía General de la Nación_) and
the other courts and judges responsible for administering justice.

6. The investigation of offences is the task of the Office of the
Procurator-General of the Nation. Responsibility for trying cases lies
with the ordinary criminal courts or the regional courts.

7. The military criminal courts do not belong to the judicial branch of
the public power, but to its executive branch. They investigate and try
offences committed by members of the armed forces and the police on
active service and in connection with that service. They include courts
martial and military courts regulated by the Military Penal Code.

8. The provisions of the Constitution also provide for the existence of
two supervisory organs. The first is the Office of the Comptroller
General of the Republic (_Contraloría General de la República_) and the
second is the Government Procurator's Office (_Ministerio Público_)
consisting of the Office of the Attorney-General of the Nation
(_Procuraduría General de la Nación_), the Office of the People's
Advocate (_Defensoría del Pueblo_), headed by an "Ombudsman", and
district and municipal representatives. While the first body is
responsible for monitoring the fiscal management of the administration
and of individuals or entities which handle funds or assets belonging to
the nation, the second is responsible for safeguarding and promoting
human rights, protecting the public interest and overseeing the official
conduct of agents of the State.

9. The Republic of Colombia is a founder Member of the United Nations
and a State party to many international legal instruments on human
rights and international humanitarian law. Among the treaties on the
subject ratified by the Colombian State are the International Covenant
on Civil and Political Rights and the first Optional Protocol, the
International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the
American Convention on Human Rights, the Convention on the Rights of the
Child, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination
Against Women, the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman
or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, the four Geneva Conventions of
12 August 1949 and Protocols I and II of 1977 additional to those
Conventions.

10. Under the Constitution, the provisions of these treaties, once they
have come into force, become part of the "constitutional bloc" and
acquire the same status as the provisions originally included in the
text of the Constitution. For the protection of human rights, the
Constitution itself establishes various mechanisms of a judicial nature
in order to guarantee the exercise of constitutional rights. The main
ones are the writ for the protection of constitutional rights and the
remedy of habeas corpus. The former, the introduction of which fulfils
the requirement of article 2, paragraph 3 (a) of the International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, may be invoked by anyone who, as
a result of any action or omission of the authorities, finds any of his
fundamental rights to be infringed or threatened. The latter, which
meets the requirement of article 9, paragraph 4 of the Covenant, may be
invoked by anyone who believes he has been deprived of his freedom
illegally.

B. _The context of violence and internal armed conflict_

11. Violations of human rights and breaches of international
humanitarian law in Colombia take place within a broad and complex
context of socio-political violence, and their analysis lies outside the
scope of this report. Some aspects of this background nevertheless need
to be mentioned.

12. Colombia has historically been marked by political and social
violence. In this century, the phenomena of political, economic, social
and cultural exclusion led to the peasants' campaigns of the 1930s and
1940s, and, later on, to a long period of violence between the
two traditional parties, the Liberals and the Conservatives. In 1957, by
means of a constitutional reform, a system of alternation and parity
between these parties was established. This meant that other political
sectors were deprived of any share in power. From the 1960s onwards, a
guerrilla movement came to prominence and its origins can in part be
explained by the context of the polarization and cold war prevailing at
that time. In order to deal with this rebellious movement, the State
involved groups of armed civilians in its counterinsurgency activities,
and with the passage of time these groups became a new source of
disturbances of law and order. In the 1970s, the drug trafficking
phenomenon came to the fore and, spreading to broad sections of
Colombian society, gave rise to new forms of criminality and corruption.

13. Colombia continues to suffer from one of the highest homicide rates
in the world. Within the context of violence, reference should be made
to the crime generated by organizations of drugs dealers, which have
even gone to the lengths of terrorist attacks, with explosives planted
in public places. There is evidence of the support these organizations
give to paramilitary groups, which on occasion act as private armies of
the drug cartel bosses. In the areas the insurgent groups control, they
permit and control coca cultivation and illicit trafficking, benefiting
economically from the contributions they exact from those involved.

14. The increase in violence and escalation of the armed conflict have
seriously damaged the country's economy, causing disinvestment,
unemployment, a drop in the production of basic foodstuffs,
marginalization and poverty. The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB)
calculates that the cost of crime means that Colombia is losing more
than 2 percentage points in the annual growth of its gross domestic
product. According to IDB statistics for February 1996, the accumulated
effect between 1970 and 1993 is such that a less violent Colombia would
have a per capita income some 32 per cent higher than at present.

C. _Situation in 1997: Electoral process and peace process_

15. Attention must be drawn to two political events of the highest
importance: the first is the electoral process which will culminate in
June 1998 with the election of a new President, and the second is the
broad debate in Colombian society about the possibility of a peaceful
outcome to the present armed conflict. Both these factors seem to be
linked to the increased violence by armed groups, which are trying in
this way to influence the election results before the opening of any
peace negotiations.

16. The elections for new departmental and municipal authorities held
on 26 October 1997 were marked by the threats and attacks to which
candidates were exposed. Despite this, the citizens' initiative known as
the "Mandate for Peace", involving more than 400 organizations of civil
society, secured nearly 10 million votes for a peaceful settlement of
the conflict and observance of the rules of international humanitarian
law. This initiative had the support of UNICEF and reinforced the
efforts of the National Conciliation Commission, a non-governmental body
which, with the support of the Catholic Church, is working for
reconciliation.

17. The Government of President Samper adopted a series of measures to
promote conditions for the opening of a dialogue. The great majority of
presidential candidates declared that they were committed to a policy of
peace.

18. In their turn, economic groups, major trade-union bodies and other
sectors of society expressed their intention of contributing to the
process by considering proposals relating to the country's serious
social and economic problems.

19. The guerrilla groups, although reserved in their response to the
Government's offers of dialogue, laying down conditions, are said to
have made it known through various contacts, which include local
authorities, "that they maintain their belief in the need to develop a
process that will culminate in reconciliation of the Colombian family"
(Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia - FARC). In January 1998, the
National Liberation Army (ELN) replied to a letter from the coordinating
committee of the citizens' "Mandate for Peace" initiative, expressing
its willingness to pursue talks on the movement's aims. The
paramilitaries, for their part, let it be known publicly that they
intended to participate in the process, demanding political recognition
and announcing the changes they proposed for the country: "We recognize
identity and convergence in many aspects of what the guerrillas
and self-defence units are claiming from the State, as a condition for
smoothing the way to peace" (statement by the paramilitary
United Self-Defence Groups of Colombia, 26 June 1997).

20. Nevertheless, in 1997 there has been an intensification of the
conflict and although there have been repeated promises on either side
to observe and comply with the rules of international humanitarian law,
the number of non-combatant victims so far is disturbing.

*II. THE SITUATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN LAW *

A. _Main violations of human rights and international humanitarian law_

21. Behaviour contrary to rights recognized by international instruments
for the protection of human rights constitutes a violation of those
instruments when it is engaged in by agents of the State or private
persons acting at their instigation, with their acquiescence or with
their complicity. Such behaviour is classified in this report along the
lines indicated by international human rights law.

22. In the case of Colombia, breaches of international humanitarian law
consist mainly in actions or omissions contrary to the provisions of
common article 3 of the four Geneva Conventions and Additional Protocol
II to those Conventions that are attributable to any person or group
participating directly in the hostilities.

23. Under the international system, the insurgent groups in Colombia can
only be responsible for breaches of international humanitarian law. When
human rights violations occur within the context of the armed conflict,
the Office of the High Commissioner in Colombia takes into account the
fact that they also constitute breaches of international humanitarian law.

24. The Office has received complaints from State institutions,
non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and private individuals. In many
cases it has been able to talk to the victims and eyewitnesses, thus
obtaining first-hand information and verifying its authenticity. It has
also received many complaints from the armed forces and the national
police about behaviour attributed to groups of armed insurgents. The
insurgent groups have not sent any complaints to the Office, which makes
it difficult to flesh out and check the information available on
violations of international humanitarian law. The statistics provided in
this report come, apart from those contained in complaints received by
the Office directly, from government sources, NGOs and public
information available in the country.

25. According to non-government sources, between October 1996 and
September 1997 a total of 3,439 persons were victims of socio-political
violence. Of these violent incidents it is estimated that 76 per cent
were attributable to paramilitary groups, 18.6 per cent to guerrillas
and 4.4 per cent to the armed forces and police. According to these
statistics, violations by paramilitaries had increased by comparison
with previous years, while those by insurgent groups and the armed
forces had declined.

1. _Civil and political rights_

(a) _Right to life_

26. Reports received by the Office of the High Commissioner in Colombia
make it clear that violations of the right to life committed by members
of the armed forces, the police and paramilitary groups and killings by
subversive groups have been occurring on an alarming scale in Colombia.
According to data provided by the Centre for Research and Popular
Education - Justice and Peace (CINEP), a total of 3,341 persons met with
violent deaths between January and September 1997. The Office of the
People's Advocate reports having received 398 complaints during 1996 on
deprivation of the right to life. *_(2)_*


(i) _Violations of and threats to the right to life by the armed forces,
the police and paramilitary groups_

27. The Office has received complaints about violations of the right to
life attributed to the armed forces, paramilitary groups and the police.
In some cases, witnesses report that the actions that led to these
violations were carried out jointly by military and paramilitary
personnel. In others, it is alleged that the paramilitaries had
logistical support from the military, or tacit support, reflected in a
failure to pursue those presumed to be responsible. Different sources
consulted by the Office concur in stating that the paramilitary groups
appear to be responsible for the greatest number of violations of the
right to life. According to reports received by the Office, in the
single municipality of Dabeiba, Antioquia Department, the paramilitaries
who control the area killed over 100 people between January and November
1997.

28. The massacres carried out by paramilitary groups have continued
throughout 1997. According to non-governmental sources, between October
1995 and September 1996 there were 78 massacres with a total of 437
victims. *_(3)_*

Similarly, according to other sources, *_(4)_*

between January and November 1997, 31 massacres with a total of 265
victims were attributed to paramilitary groups. In many cases violations
of the right to life of this kind are preceded by torture and public
brutality intended to terrorize the population.

29. In the middle of 1997, after the massacre at Mapiripán, Meta
Department, Carlos Castaño, supreme leader of the paramilitary United
Self-Defence Groups of Colombia, told the press that there would be
"many more Mapiripáns". Since that date, and up to the end of November
1997, there had been 15 massacres with a total of 165 victims. As in the
case of selective executions, witnesses frequently state that these were
actions perpetrated by members of the armed forces passing themselves
off as paramilitaries, joint actions by members of the armed forces or
police and paramilitaries, or actions by paramilitaries enjoying the
complicity, support or acquiescence of the regular forces. The details
of the cases reported to the Office in Colombia suggest that these
events could not have occurred without such acquiescence, support or
complicity.

30. It also has to be said that violations of the right to life of
members of marginalized groups are still widespread. Information
supplied to the Office refers to violations of the right to life of
ordinary criminals, homeless persons, drug addicts and prostitutes
attributed to members of the "Convivir" associations.

31. In 1997, the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or
arbitrary executions transmitted allegations of violations of the right
to life of 181 persons committed for the most part by members of
paramilitary groups and the army. The Rapporteur also transmitted to the
Government a letter dated 13 August 1997 in which he expressed concern
at the number of massacres reported and referred specifically to those
at Vegachí (Antioquia) in February 1997 and at Mapiripán (Meta) in July
1997.

32. Also in 1997, the Special Rapporteur transmitted 24 urgent appeals
to the Colombian Government requesting that the necessary steps should
be taken to protect the physical integrity and right to life of persons
who had received death threats from members of the armed forces, the
police, paramilitary groups or individuals cooperating with them. These
urgent appeals included requests for protection for human rights
activists, priests, trade unionists, municipal representatives and
peasants' representatives.

33. The civilian population have often been threatened by the combatants
in the conflict, whether to get them to cooperate with one side or the
other, or to dissuade them from doing so. Death threats are generally a
signal that there are going to be attempts on people's lives and lead to
forced departure and exile. This is practised on a massive scale in
rural areas, especially against members of the population, in order to
intimidate them and provoke an exodus.

34. The Office in Colombia has received reports indicating that in many
cases paramilitary raids on the peasant population were preceded by the
passage of army personnel, who recommended the inhabitants to leave the
region "because the people arriving after us are those who cut you into
little pieces".

35. Accordingly, some of the urgent appeals by the Special Rapporteur on
extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions were sent on behalf of
the civilian population of various municipalities (civilian population
of the communities in the north-east of Chocó, inhabitants of the
municipalities of Remedios, Yondó and Cantagallo, inhabitants of the
municipality of El Carmen de Atrato, civilian population of the
municipality of Segovia, civilian population of El Carmen de Bolívar and
San Jacinto, among others), following increased paramilitary activity in
those areas resulting in fears for their physical integrity.

(ii) _Killings by the guerrilla forces_

36. The armed forces reported to the Office of the High Commissioner in
Colombia that 47 soldiers of the national army had lost their lives
after being taken prisoner by the guerrillas. Three of the captives were
said to have been finished off when they were wounded and defenceless.
According to the same sources, another 14 soldiers were killed by the
guerrillas while on leave.

37. According to reports by the armed forces, 166 civilians died at the
hands of guerrilla groups. The Colombian Commission of Jurists, for its
part, reports that armed insurgent groups were responsible for the
deaths of 217 persons in the period between October 1995 and
September 1996. The Office received information from individuals about
the deaths of 88 civilians at the hands of different insurgent
organizations. In many cases the guerrillas describe persons protected
by international humanitarian law as "military objectives", implying
that they regard them as legitimate targets. It is also alleged that
guerrilla groups consider it justified and legitimate to make attempts
on the lives of persons accused of being informers for the armed forces
or police, or collaborators with the paramilitaries. In the areas
controlled by insurgents, they are said to be responsible for the deaths
of ordinary criminals and drug addicts.

38. The guerrillas have also been responsible for massacres. Thus,
according to non-governmental sources, between January and
November 1997, they committed 14 massacres of civilians, with a total of
95 victims.

39. The practice described above of threatening the civilian population
applies also to guerrilla groups participating in the conflict.
Similarly, in areas controlled by insurgent groups threats for purposes
of extortion are common, the guerrilla groups demanding collaboration in
cash or in kind. Frequently the threats have the purpose or consequence
of forcing individuals or families to leave. If, moreover, the persons
threatened do not comply, the guerrillas murder them or expel them from
the area.

40. The armed forces informed the Office of six cases of threats by
subversive groups against civilians and relatives of members of the
armed forces. In addition, reports have been received from individuals
concerning 10 cases of threats by guerrilla groups against civilians.
The Office of the People's Advocate states that it received 634 reports
of death threats in 1996. *_(5)_*

(b) _Right to personal security_

(i) _Enforced disappearances_

41. The Office of the People's Advocate states that between 1994
and 1996 1,012 cases of enforced disappearances were reported to it.
CINEP-Justice and Peace reported that between January and November 1997
there were 87 cases, of which 81 were attributed to paramilitary groups
and 6 to

42. During the first eight months of its work in Colombia, the
High Commissioner's Office received complaints relating to 72 cases. In
27 of them, responsibility was attributed to State agents. Most of the
others were attributed to paramilitary groups, and some to persons
unknown. Cases were also reported in which responsibility was attributed
to the paramilitaries acting jointly with the armed forces or police.

43. The Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances
transmitted 36 new cases to the Government in 1997, of which 16 had
occurred in that year. This brought the total number of Colombian cases
pending before the Group to 782.

(ii) _Hostage-taking and abduction_

44. The prohibition of hostage-taking, embodied in article 4,
paragraph 2 (c) of Protocol II Additional to the four Geneva
Conventions, applies to abduction for purposes of extortion by the
combatants in the context of the Colombian internal armed conflict. Such
abduction is being practised systematically by guerrilla groups to
finance their activities.

45. The National Police state that between January and October 1997
the guerrillas abducted 585 persons. The Presidential Programme for
Abduction Victims records 382 abductions by the guerrillas in the same
period. The armed forces submitted complaints to the Office concerning
the abduction of 53 persons by the guerrillas between 1992 and 1997,
including 17 foreigners.

46. Paramilitary groups also resort to this practice, in particular
abducting guerrillas' relatives as a reprisal against them. Some members
of the armed forces and police have been involved in this practice.

(c) _Torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment_

47. The Office of the People's Advocate speaks of 65 cases of torture
reported to it in 1996. In its data bank, CINEP-Justice and Peace has
records of 155 cases between October 1996 and September 1997. Up to
November 1997 the Office had received information on 28 cases.

48. The People's Advocate says that the torture statistics for Colombia
do not reflect the actual frequency with which this crime is committed,
because many of the persons tortured only appear in the lists of victims
of enforced disappearance or extrajudicial execution. The Advocate also
stated that in many cases, when torture took place while the person was
in the custody of agents of the State, the victims were obliged to
declare in writing that they had been well treated. Many people did not
report being tortured for fear of being executed subsequently.

49. The Colombian Commission of Jurists said that paramilitary groups
were responsible for 77 per cent of cases of torture and had made it a
practice to torture people in public, and then to shoot them or to cut
their throats. Many cases of torture were attributed to members of the
armed forces or police, and not just in those areas of the country where
hostilities were taking place in the armed conflict. The armed forces,
for their part, reported to the Office eight cases of torture of
captured soldiers, for which they held guerrilla groups responsible.

50. The practice of torture is forbidden under common article 3 of the
four Geneva Conventions and under article 4, paragraph 2 (a) of
Additional Protocol II.

(d) _Freedoms_

51. Many international instruments for the protection of human rights
ratified by Colombia guarantee freedom of thought, expression,
association and assembly, and are duly protected by the Constitution.
However, the Office was able to establish that these rights were
seriously jeopardized in practice and that there were no real safeguards
for their free exercise.

(i) _Trade-union freedom_

52. For the International Labour Organization (ILO), trade-union freedom
has to be guaranteed both in law and in practice, the State being
internationally answerable for violations of that freedom. The ILO
Committee on Freedom of Association considers the Colombian case to be
one of extreme gravity and has expressed its concern at the climate of
terror resulting from death threats to trade unionists, which interferes
with the conduct of trade-union activities.

53. According to information from the data bank of the National Trade
Union School, between 1 January and 15 October 1997 123 workers
belonging to trade unions were murdered, of whom 25 per cent were union
leaders. The sectors most affected were workers belonging to
agricultural trade unions and craftsmen (43.27 per cent of trade-union
members murdered were craftsmen, according to the same source). During
this same period, seven trade unionists were victims of enforced
disappearances. There were also reports of threats against trade-union
leaders and members, bomb attacks on trade-union premises, persecution
of workers for trade-union activities and kidnapping of foreign workers.

54. The paramilitary groups are said to be stepping up their attacks on
trade unionists, whereas there is a drop in the number of violations
attributable to insurgent groups by comparison with the previous two years.

(ii) _Freedom of thought and expression_

55. Although great freedom of expression can be found in the media,
including strong criticism of the Government, something should be said
about the situation of Colombian journalists, who are exposed to all
types of attacks in the course of their work. The Office of the High
Commissioner in Colombia was informed that in 1997 four journalists had
been murdered precisely because of their work as journalists. Many have
been kidnapped or threatened, some being obliged to leave the country.
These murders and threats create a justified feeling of insecurity among
journalists, which results in "self-censorship" in their actual work,
seriously endangering the right to inform and to be informed.

(iii) _Exercise of political rights_

56. According to the law and order report prepared by the Ministry
of the Interior for the period January-August 1997, there were
196 offences against candidates and serving mayors and councillors,
including 78 abductions, 72 murders, 33 terrorist acts, 21 attacks
and 4 disappearances.

57. A military intelligence report published in the press in May 1997
claimed that 650 mayors (representing over half the municipalities in
Colombia) had direct relations or collaborated with the guerrillas. The
mayors in question interpreted this as a threat.

58. Colombian political activity is characterized by a high degree of
intolerance towards opposition parties and movements. The most striking
example is the case of the Patriotic Union, whose activists have been
the victims of systematic executions. More than 1,500 members of this
party have been assassinated since it was formed in 1985, including
elected officials and almost all its representatives in Congress. Others
have had to go into exile and give up their political posts.

59. Members of M19 and the Peace, Hope and Freedom Movement, composed of
former guerrilla fighters who have returned to civilian life, stated
that they had been threatened and attacked by the guerrillas.

60. A few days before the elections of 26 October 1997, two electoral
observers for the Organization of American States (OAS) and an Antioquia
government official were abducted by the National Liberation Army (ELN),
being released some days later. The Office received complaints from the
Patriotic Union and the Communist Party, reporting that various of their
members had had to leave the country because of threats during the
electoral process. The Liberal Party also reported the assassination of
some of its members as a means of exerting pressure in connection with
the electoral process, among whom mention should be made of Senator
Jorge Cristo Sahium, a killing claimed by the ELN.

(e) _Right to due process_

61. In the latest report by the People's Advocate to Congress, he states
that his Office received 2,227 complaints in 1996 about infringements of
the right to due process.

62. The Office of the High Commissioner in Colombia has received
complaints from defence counsel and accused persons which report serious
procedural irregularities. These occur, generally, in connection with
the proceedings of regional courts. All the complaints indicate that the
opportunities for challenging the evidence for the prosecution and
putting that for the defence are severely limited. This is particularly
flagrant in cases in which there are witnesses whose identity is not
revealed.

63. In addition, the right to presumption of innocence has been violated
through the application of the procedural rules governing the operation
of the Office of the Public Prosecutor. This body has the legal power to
order a person to be taken into custody when the proceedings are still
at the investigation stage, without any charges having been brought.
This in practice reverses the presumption of innocence, since it implies
a presumption of the defendant's guilt. It is a matter of concern that
in some cases the performance of the staff of the Prosecutor's Office is
measured by the number of charges brought and that this figure is taken
into account in determining whether they are to be kept on and/or
promoted within the service. In the opinion of the Office in Colombia,
this has created a bias in favour of presumptions that are not
acceptable under international rules on human rights. [*_back to the
contents_*

B. _Specific aspects of international humanitarian law_

1. _Damage caused to the civilian population_

64. The Office of the High Commissioner in Colombia observes that the
combatants use the civilian population to protect themselves from enemy
fire, and that these civilians are forced to move and their access to
food and medicines is restricted, in flagrant violation of articles 13,
14 and 17 of Protocol II Additional to the Geneva Conventions. The
inhabitants of rural areas are particularly exposed to indiscriminate
attacks by all protagonists in the conflict.

65. Cases have been reported to the Office in which the combatants have
made use of civilian vehicles and homes or have mingled with civilians
during military operations, putting them in a situation of extreme
danger. In other instances, they have carried out indiscriminate attacks
on populated areas, injuring or killing civilians and damaging civilian
property.

66. The Office has also received reports of attacks on the civilian
population attributed both to insurgent groups and to paramilitary and
armed forces personnel. The attacks by the paramilitaries have been
particularly cruel and have taken the form, _inter alia_, of massacres,
reported in another chapter of this report, and the destruction of
civilian property.

67. Both the armed forces and the insurgent groups use mines, justifying
their use as strictly defensive. However, in several regions of the
country where enormous numbers of mines have been planted in the course
of 30 years of conflict, it is the civilian population which is most
affected. There is no comprehensive information on the magnitude of this
problem. The Colombian Commission of Jurists reports that anti-personnel
mines killed 16 civilians and injured 30 between October 1995 and
September 1996.

2. _Attacks on civilian property_

68. While acknowledging that not all attacks against civilian property
are covered by the humanitarian norms set out in Protocol II Additional
to the Geneva Conventions, the Office in Colombia expresses its concern
at the systematic practice of acts of this nature. Attacks on oil
pipelines by insurgent groups cause oil spills which seriously damage
agricultural areas, sources of drinking water and inhabited areas. The
report on this problem by the People's Advocate refers to 636 attacks on
oil pipelines by guerrilla groups between 1986 and 1996. According to
the same report, the attacks caused loss of life on two occasions as a
result of fires started by the explosions.

69. Another guerrilla practice is to burn vehicles at roadblocks set up
for the purpose, after forcing the passengers to get out. According to
the National Carriers' Association, 319 vehicles have been burned in
Colombia in the last three years. The Governor of Antioquia reported to
the Office that 105 buses had been burned in 30 attacks by the FARCs and
the ELN in the run-up to the elections.

70. The armed forces also reported to the Office six guerrilla attacks
against public installations, including an attack on the generators of
Guatapé power station in Antioquia, putting it out of commission.

3. _Protection of medical duties, the wounded and the sick_

71. Articles 10 and 11 of Protocol II Additional to the Geneva
Conventions provide for the protection of medical duties compatible with
medical ethics. However, the Office in Colombia has observed, from
testimony collected in the field, that violations of these basic
principles of international humanitarian law continue to occur in
Colombia. Hospitals and medical vehicles have been the target of armed
attacks, some doctors have been forced to carry out acts contrary to
medical ethics, and in conflict areas they are subjected to pressure and
threats by the various combatant groups. A complaint has been submitted
to the Office concerning the extrajudicial execution of civilians who
had assisted injured guerrilla fighters, in violation of article 7 of
Additional Protocol II.

4. _Recruitment of minors_

72. According to various NGOs and institutions, children under 15 years
of age have long been recruited by the various protagonists in the armed
conflict. The People's Advocate, for example, gives a figure of
15 per cent for minors among the members of paramilitary groups, while
the figure drops to about 7 per cent and 10 per cent respectively for
children under 15 and under 17 in the ranks of the guerrillas. The
Colombian Commission of Jurists reports that to its knowledge 17 young
people under 18 years of age were taking part in guerrilla activities
between October 1995 and September 1996.

73. Article 4, paragraph 3 of Protocol II Additional to the Geneva
Conventions prohibits the recruitment of children under 15 years of age
in the armed forces or armed groups. Up to December 1997, Colombian
legislation contained provisions which allowed the immediate recruitment
for military service of young men who had obtained their school-leaving
certificate, whatever their age. Colombia has very recently adopted
legal measures to prevent the recruitment of minors. It should also be
mentioned that in 1996 Colombia withdrew the reservation which it had
entered when ratifying the Convention on the Rights of the Child,
whereby it would not recruit persons under 18 years of age. [*_back to
the contents_*

C. _Economic, social and cultural rights_

74. The Office has not had the capacity to carry out a detailed
follow-up of this important group of rights, nor has it received
complaints of violations of these rights. However, on the basis of the
joint country evaluation document prepared by the bodies of the
United Nations system present in Colombia, the Office is able to make
the following observations.

75. Perhaps on account of an almost complete lack of a tradition of
effective social protection and inadequate integration of the social
fabric, Colombian society, like many others, has no collective awareness
of the universal nature of these rights, or of the social obligation of
avoiding discrimination in the ability to exercise them. Hence the
crucial aspect in analysing economic, social and cultural rights is not
their legal recognition but the possibility of rendering them effective.

76. The level of poverty affecting a large part of the Colombian
population gives cause for concern. There is a lack of effective social
protection in Colombia to guarantee a minimum level of subsistence in
terms of food, housing, education and health care, and also a healthy
environment. Income distribution in Colombia is among the most uneven in
Latin America; the richest 25 per cent of the population earn 30 times
more than the poorest 25 per cent. It is also one of the few Latin
American countries where income distribution has worsened in this
decade. The percentage of the population unable to afford a minimum
basket of goods increased from 54 per cent in 1994 to 57 per cent in
1997 (data from the National Department of Planning).

1. _Education_

77. The national illiteracy rate is 10 per cent; it is very unevenly
distributed since in some regions it is as high as 25 per cent. Public
spending on education is slightly more than 4 per cent of GDP and
private spending is at least 1.1 per cent of GDP. Compared with other
countries in the region, expenditure on primary and secondary education
is proportionally much lower than on higher education.

2. _Health_

78. Colombia is the Latin American country which spends most on health.
In 1996, this expenditure amounted to 10 per cent of GDP, including
direct public spending, insurance contributions and private spending.
From 1994 to 1995, the amount of public resources in real terms
allocated to the health sector grew by some 80 per cent. Although
health-specific resources are exceptionally high, the result has not
been increased enjoyment of this right throughout the country. In 1993,
the Health Social Security System was established, unifying the social
security system for workers in the formal sector, the free or semi-free
public service and the private services. However, in practice the three
components still exist, along with a high level of discrimination on the
basis of the income and employment status of the users.

3. _Housing_

79. Colombia has a problem of access to housing. According to the 1993
population and housing census, 15 per cent of Colombians were living in
conditions of critical overcrowding and 9.9 per cent in inadequate
housing. The system of housing purchase subsidies has so far proved
inadequate since dubious practices like corruption continue to exist,
the main impact of which is on the most deprived sectors.

80. Another restriction on access to housing can be found in the high
rates of interest on housing loans and the high levels of speculation in
the prices of urban land. Drinking water and sanitation services are
scarce, particularly in rural areas, while the electricity network has
grown considerably.

4. _Wages and employment_

81. Unemployment has increased considerably, from 7.8 per cent in 1990
to over 12 per cent at the end of 1997. Young people and women are most
vulnerable to unemployment. A labour protection model which is obsolete
in its conception still exists; it is geared to a pattern of stable
employment (rather than stable income) with subsidies going mainly to
permanent workers or employees, which seems to be an obstacle in
combating unemployment. There are many aspects of the Colombian and
world economy which would appear to make a review of the protection
system necessary, so that there are simultaneous guarantees of full and
undiscriminating respect for the right to work and to an income, and of
national economic growth, which is inevitably linked to the new context
of the world economy.

82. Another worrying aspect of labour management in Colombia is the
number of children and young people who work. It is estimated that
nearly 2.5 million children under 18 years of age are working, of whom
948,000 are under 14. In many cases the working day is extremely long
and the remuneration below the minimum legal wage (data supplied by the
Colombian Family Welfare Institute).

5. _A healthy environment_

83. Natural resources and the environment are steadily deteriorating and
becoming exhausted. It is estimated that every year 500,000 hectares of
land are deforested, with the resulting impact on local ecosystems, the
production of oxygen and water, and pollution by erosion. The
information on pollution due to solid wastes is disturbing. Water and
air pollution exist on an enormous scale.

84. Generally speaking, environmental problems in Colombia are
indicative of the lack of a broad awareness of the need for the
protection and rational use of natural resources, although an interest
in good environmental management, promoted by certain public bodies,
companies, teaching institutions and NGOs, is beginning to develop.

6. _Food_

85. The internal armed conflict is having a negative impact on the
enjoyment of this right, not only because large tracts of farming land
have been abandoned on account of the violence, but also because the
various protagonists in the conflict restrict the entry of food into
many municipalities. Malnutrition is as much as 8 per cent among
children under the age of 15. [*_back to the contents_*

D. _Particularly serious aspects of the situation of human rights and
international humanitarian law_

1. _The paramilitary phenomenon and the "Convivir" associations_

86. In the context of its counter-insurgency activities, the Government
of Colombia issued Decree No. 3398 in 1965. This was converted to
permanent law by Act No. 48 of 1968, whereby the organization and
promotion of groups of armed civilians, known as "peasant self-defence
groups", were legalized. Members of the armed forces supplied these
groups with arms, trained them and provided them with logistic support
as a back-up to the armed forces and police in conflict zones. People
who considered that their interests were threatened viewed the
establishment of the "self-defence groups" favourably and supported
their activities. According to reliable information supplied to the
Office of the High Commissioner, even today there is a worrying link
between certain sectors of the local economic and political elites and
paramilitary groups. The "paramilitary" phenomenon developed more
strongly after 1980, when these groups stepped up the selective physical
extermination of political opposition leaders, trade-union and social
leaders, and State officials accused of collaborating with the guerrillas.

87. Act No. 48 of 1968 remained in force until 1989, when the "peasant
self-defence groups" were declared illegal owing to their activities
getting out of hand and their obvious links with drug traffickers.
However, no provision was made for effectively dismantling them nor was
there a clear demarcation with the State.

88. At the present time, according to the monitoring bodies and NGOs,
the paramilitary groups are responsible for most of the extrajudicial
executions, torture and enforced disappearances. The Office has also
reached this conclusion from the complaints it has received. During
1997, the action of the paramilitary groups continued to spread
throughout the country and recently to areas under guerrilla control.

89. In their travels around the country, Office personnel have observed
the widespread terror among the civilian population in the face of the
selective executions and massacres, preceded by the torture of the
victims, disappearances, illegal checks on identity or travel, and
restriction of access to food and medicines carried out by the
paramilitary groups; these practices are giving rise to mass population
movements. These seem to be the methods chosen by these groups to spread
terror in regions in which the population are accused of "helping the
guerrillas". The presence of paramilitaries in rural areas was also
observed by members of the Office.

90. On the basis of the complaints received and observation of the
phenomenon in the field, the Office's view is that a considerable number
of the acts of violence by the paramilitaries are carried out with the
tolerance, not to say complicity, of public servants, particularly
members of the armed forces and the National Police, as was seen in the
past in the Trujillo and Riofrio cases. This also so far seems to be the
case with the massacre which took place between 15 and 20 July in the
town of Mapiripán (Department of Meta), where a large group of
paramilitaries, composed of members of the United Self-Defence Groups of
Colombia, murdered an as yet undetermined number of persons (at least
28), and no authority took action to prevent them. Witnesses agree that
the paramilitaries arrived by plane in San José del Guaviare, which is a
few kilometres from Mapiripán and the headquarters of the VII Army
Brigade. The same witnesses assert that they were brought to Mapiripán
in heavy vehicles and boats. Mobile Brigade No. 2 is also stationed in
the region.

91. According to the information received by the Office, there is a
general impression that combating the paramilitaries has not been a
priority for the armed forces. However, senior officials of the Office
of the Procurator-General of the Nation told the High Commissioner's
Office that they had no evidence of the existence of an institutional
policy of support for paramilitary activity by the Government or the
General Command of the armed forces. In his most recent report to
Congress, the People's Advocate, who heads a monitoring body which is
part of the Government Procurator's Office, said that the paramilitary
groups "have become the illegal arm of the armed forces and police, for
whom they carry out the dirty work which the armed forces and police
cannot do as authorities subject to the rule of law". For the People's
Advocate, paramilitary activity represents "a new form of exercising
illegal repression with no strings attached" *_(6)_*

(see section III, "Follow-up of international recommendations by the
Colombian State").

92. The paramilitary problem has become even more complex owing to the
existence of groups of armed civilians who are legally authorized to
carry out activities similar to those of the armed forces and police.
Special Decree No. 356 of 1994 established the "special private security
and vigilante services", whose members were authorized to ensure their
own security in high-risk areas and to use combat weapons. This gave
rise to the "Convivir" associations, which have now been stripped of
that name but have by no means contributed to clarifying the relations
between the State and paramilitary activity. In practice, observers of
the human rights situation in Colombia find it very difficult to
distinguish between the activities of the paramilitary groups and those
of certain "Convivir" associations since in many cases there are areas
in which they coincide, converge or supplement or replace each other .
The victims of these activities are incapable of distinguishing the
groups to which the perpetrators belong, and refer indiscriminately to
"los paracos" (i.e. the paramilitaries) or "the Convivir people". Reliable
information received by the Office refers to the participation of known
paramilitaries in "Convivir" associations, some of them with arrest
warrants against them.

93. The "Convivir" associations have been operating without effective
control or adequate supervision. In November 1997, the Office of the
Superintendent of Private Vigilante and Security Groups, which is
responsible for overseeing them, admitted that it was not capable of
carrying out this task effectively; in many places they have operated
with the exclusive and irregular support of the governors of departments
or military commanders.

94. According to the Office of the Procurator-General of the Nation, by
the end of 1997 at least 35 criminal investigations were in progress
into members of these associations who were accused of homicide, torture
and other serious crimes. Complaints received by the Office of the High
Commissioner in Colombia also report cases of executions, torture,
disappearances and other crimes committed by their members.

95. In 1997 a lively public debate took place on the legitimacy of these
associations. Their supporters spoke of the right of self-defence and
the cooperation which citizens owe to the armed forces and police. Their
opponents mentioned the danger of encouraging paramilitary activity and
heightening the spiral of violence (see section III, "Follow-up of
international recommendations by the Colombian State").

2. _Enforced displacement_

96. The enforced displacement of persons continues to be one of the most
serious consequences of the armed conflict. According to figures
provided by the Advisory Office for Human Rights and Displacement
(CODHES), some 180,000 persons are displaced every year, and the total
number of displaced persons since 1985 is estimated at 1 million. These
figures tally with the analysis by the People's Advocate. The Colombian
Government, for its part, puts the number of persons displaced since
1995 at 300,000.

97. The causes of this enforced displacement vary, but chief among them
are violations of human rights and international humanitarian law in the
context of the domestic armed conflict. The enforced displacement of the
civilian population is being used as a war strategy by the armed forces,
police and paramilitary groups. In many cases it is the population
suspected of providing a basis of support for the insurgents who are
forced to leave their homes and workplaces. Once the inhabitants have
been evicted, any land of strategic value in economic or military terms
is repopulated with supporters of the military or paramilitary forces
thus creating security zones needed to control the land. The guerrillas,
for their part, provoke the displacement of inhabitants whom they
consider hostile to their activities or who have infringed the rules of
conduct imposed by the insurgent group in the areas under its control.

98. However, the enforced displacement of the population does not
reflect solely military or political objectives. A clear convergence may
be seen between the counter-insurgency strategy and the interests of
certain economic sectors which support paramilitary groups with the aim
of increasing their hold over natural resources and productive land. The
Office of the High Commissioner has received testimony from peasants who
have been robbed of their land by paramilitaries in the service of drug
traffickers or local landowners, or who have had to sell their land
cheaply before leaving the region under death threats.

99. Similarly, the displacement of individuals continues to constitute a
substantial part of the total number of displacements and, for the most
part, involves peasants and social, trade-union and community leaders,
who are forced to move with their families after receiving threats or
being attacked or harassed. It is difficult to obtain an approximate
figure for the number of "individual" displacements since in the
majority of cases the victims choose not to report what has happened,
preferring anonymity in the area where they resettle.

100. Often displacement does not end the persecution. The Office has
been informed of political violence against displaced persons in their
new place of residence and against organizations of displaced persons.
The displaced persons settled in the camps of Bahía Cupica (Department
of El Chocó) and Pavarandó (Department of Antioquia) have been
threatened with death and harassed by paramilitary groups. The President
of the Displaced Persons' Association in Rioblanco (Department of
Tolima) was assassinated in September 1997 and the Vice-President of the
Association has received death threats. Several members of NGOs working
with displaced persons have also been the victims of serious violations.
According to information supplied by the National Mutual Aid Association
(ANDAS), three of its members and leaders were assassinated in 1996 and
1997, one has been missing since 15 April 1997, and six have been
arrested and accused of contempt of authority.

101. The situation of the displaced population, both in collective
settlements and on the outskirts of cities, is critical in the extreme
and takes the form of lack of access to basic health, food, housing and
education services, and serious overcrowding.

102. There are no official statistics on those mainly responsible for
the displacements, but CODHES, along with the Catholic Church and other
institutions, says that in 1996 paramilitary groups were responsible for
33 per cent of the displacements, a further 29 per cent were caused by
the guerrillas, and 16 per cent by the armed forces and police. The
Office has reason to believe that in 1997 the percentage of
displacements attributable to the paramilitaries was considerably higher.

103. The phenomenon of displacement grew in the course of 1997.
Beginning in December 1996 a number of mass displacements occurred in
the Department of El Chocó as a result of the paramilitary presence in
the area of Bajo and Medio Atrato, the fighting between the guerrillas
and paramilitaries in January 1997 and the indiscriminate bombing by the
army as part of "Operation Genesis" initiated on 23 February 1997,
aggravated by the control of food and medical supplies by the army and
paramilitaries as a means of combating the guerrillas. In these
circumstances, between 15,000 and 17,000 persons were forced to leave
the area, most of them in the first four months of the year.

104. In its endeavours to find solutions to the precarious situation of
the displaced persons, the Government has encouraged these communities
to return to their places of origin. However, it has been observed from
information provided by various organizations, and from what the Office
has learned for itself, that this solution was promoted even though
minimum conditions of security could not be guaranteed and the causes
which gave rise to the displacement had not been eliminated. In
Rioblanco (Department of Tolima), approximately 2,000 persons were
displaced from the village of Maracaibo in September 1996 as a result of
threats and murders of villagers by members of a "Convivir" association.
A week later, about 70 per cent of the displaced persons returned to
their village as part of a return plan under the protection of the
army's 6th Brigade. However, when further murders took place, at least
300 peasants felt obliged to move out once again (see section III,
"Follow-up of international recommendations by the Colombian State").

105. The Representative of the Secretary-General on internally displaced
persons has been closely following the situation of displaced persons in
Colombia. In his report to the fifty-second session of the General
Assembly (A/52/506 of 7 November 1997), he stressed the important role
of field offices, including the Colombia Office, with regard to the
situation of displaced persons. On that occasion he said that greater
involvement on the part of the international community in Colombia, as
he had requested following a visit to the country in June 1994, was even
more pressing than before (paragraph 32). In January 1998 the
Representative discussed the topic of displaced persons in Colombia in
greater detail in a letter to the High Commissioner.

106. In view of the magnitude of the problem, the Government of Colombia
sent an invitation to UNHCR to study the possibility of opening a
permanent office in Colombia. The High Commissioner for Human Rights
welcomes the possibility of a UNHCR presence in Colombia, with which it
would cooperate and coordinate activities as with the other protagonists
present in the field. It is clear that the participation of the Office
of the High Commissioner in Colombia in the issue of displaced persons
would entail greater efforts and financial resources in order to carry
out this very important task. However, the Office has participated as an
observer in a return programme for a community of displaced persons, at
the request of the victims themselves.

3. _Victims of violations of human rights and international humanitarian
law_

107. The civilian population is the main victim of violence by the
various protagonists in the conflict. Local populations and authorities
living in the conflict zones are exposed to the actions of all the armed
participants. As has been seen in preceding paragraphs, most of the
victims of violations of human rights and international humanitarian
human law are to be found among the peasant population.

108. The ethnic minorities, living mainly in rural areas, have been the
target of numerous attacks by all the protagonists in the armed
conflict. In recent years, a large number of indigenous communities have
declared their neutrality to the parties to the conflict, and requested
that none of the armed participants, including the armed forces of the
State, should involve them in their actions. The data bank of the Centre
for Research and Popular Education (CINEP) contains 47 cases of
indigenous victims of various abuses, including 25 murders, between
October 1996 and September 1997.

109. The Office of the People's Advocate reported the murder of
nine members of the Koreguaje indigenous group in the Department of
Caquetá at the hands of members of the FARCs in September 1997. In
August of the same year, the FARCs allegedly murdered 13 indigenous
inhabitants in the community lands of San Luis y Aguas Negras,
municipality of Milán, Caquetá. The People's Advocate also condemned the
indiscriminate bombing of an area inhabited by members of the Pijao
indigenous group in the Departments of Caquetá, Meta and Guaviare, as
part of the "Destructor II" campaign carried out by the army against the
FARCs from September 1997. The bombs fell a few metres from the houses,
endangering the lives of 220 persons. Houses were burned down, animals
killed and crops bombed. The Office of the People's Advocate further
reported that the armed forces and police claimed to have used
indigenous children as informers about the movement of the subversive
groups in the area.

110. The figures for persons missing and abducted are alarming and are
given in another section of this report (paragraphs 41-46). Most of
these crimes occur in the context of the armed conflict or in close
connection with it. The effects concern not only the victims themselves,
but also their family members and create psychological anxiety and
social polarization, which seriously affect all of Colombian society.

111. However, as has already been said, not all human rights violations
take place in the context of the armed conflict. Because of the
polarization of positions resulting from the conflict, persons engaged
in legitimate activities are seen as part of the conflict and are in a
critical position precisely because of their activities. Thus,
opposition political activists, social and trade-union leaders, human
rights activists, State officials responsible for ensuring respect for
human rights and journalists have their fundamental rights violated. In
this regard, the Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and
lawyers has, in his report on Colombia (E/CN.4/1998/39/Add.2, chap. IV),
expressed his concern about the working conditions in which members of
the legal profession, including judges, prosecutors, lawyers and human
rights advocates, have to perform their duties.

112. Members of the XX Army Intelligence Brigade informed the Office in
Colombia that 85 per cent of the persons they consider to be subversive
are engaged in what the military refer to as the "political war". They
include in this term the activities of some NGOs, the trade unions, some
political parties such as the Communist Party, and even some members of
traditional parties. According to this interpretation, only about
15 per cent of the "subversives" have taken up arms. In a report sent to
the director of the Public Prosecutor's Offices in Medellín (Antioquia),
an army commander stated: "as is well known, subversion comprises an
armed section and a political section, which comprises all of the left
and is supported by various bodies which they control, particularly in
areas of influence such as human rights offices, which in turn are
supported by national and international non-governmental organizations".

113. In accordance with this view of the situation, attacks on human
rights activists increased considerably in 1997. In the past year more
than 20 members and leaders of various human rights organizations have
been murdered. Others have been victims of enforced disappearances,
threats and harassment, which have forced them to move or to go into
exile. An example of this is the case of the members of the Colombian
section of Amnesty International, who were forced to close their office
and leave the country. The international community also voiced its
disgust at the attack on two members of CINEP, Mr. Mario Calderón and
his wife Elsa Constanza Alvarado, who were brutally murdered in their
home in May 1997. In the attack Mrs. Alvarado's father was also murdered
and his wife seriously wounded. The Colombian authorities report that
six of the alleged perpetrators of the crime were captured.

114. It is a matter of concern that, on the basis of denunciations by
State intelligence bodies, proceedings have been initiated in regional
courts against human rights activists and lawyers of persons detained
for political offences. In January 1997, several members of ANDAS were
arrested and accused of the crime of rebellion, including Ana Rengifo,
Vice-President of the Association, Ramón Alberto Osorio, trade-union
leader and member of the Colombian Communist Party, and Eugenio Córdoba,
trade-union member. The case against these persons was dismissed by the
Office of the Procurator-General and they were released. It is apparent
from the case file that the legal proceedings initiated by the regional
Procurator's Office were based on statements by army informers, of whom
two revealed their identity and three appeared as faceless witnesses,
and on an intelligence report from the Unified Action Groups for the
Freedom of Individuals (GAULAs), made up of members of the army and the
police specializing in crimes of abduction and extortion. Following his
release, Eugenio Córdoba was murdered in Quibdó on 23 June 1997, while
Ramón Alberto Osorio has been missing since 15 April 1997. In
August 1997, Ana Rengifo was rearrested and accused of rebellion; she
was released in late December 1997.

115. Persons from economically or socially marginalized sectors also
suffer violations of fundamental rights. The practice of extrajudicial
executions of beggars, ordinary criminals, homosexuals, prostitutes and
persons belonging to other impoverished or marginal segments of society,
particularly street children, continues in Colombia. According to the
information available, violations of this type occur mainly in the towns
and cities. Complaints received by the Office of the High Commissioner
point to members of the "Convivir" associations and the armed forces and
police as possible perpetrators.

116. Attacks on women and children should also be mentioned, although
full information on their gravity is not available. Many acts of
violence against women, for example, violations of a sexual nature, are
not reported. More than 58 per cent of displaced persons are female, and
of these 24 per cent are widows with dependent children. Outside the
context of the armed conflict there are still forms of sexual
discrimination consisting of a real deterioration of the enjoyment of
rights by women, although Colombia has, _inter alia_, ratified the
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against
Women, and its Constitution recognizes women as having full equality
with men (see section III, "Follow-up of international recommendations
by the Colombian State").

4. _The functioning of justice_

(a) _The problem of impunity_

117. Both the Colombian authorities and the NGOs agree that the failure
to investigate and try offences which constitute human rights violations
and war crimes is one of the factors which has contributed most to the
continuation of many and repeated forms of behaviour violating the
rights protected by the international instruments. The People's Advocate
has said that on the difficult human rights scene in Colombia "impunity
is one of the basic ingredients, constituting a powerful feedback for
violence and leading some people to take justice into their own hands,
thus creating an almost unbreakable vicious circle".

118. This phenomenon had already been observed by the Special Rapporteur
on torture and the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or
arbitrary executions when they visited Colombia in October 1994 and
stated in their joint report that "The first and most serious
observation with regard to the administration of justice relates to the
weakness of the system which is reflected in the high rate of impunity.
Impunity is both the cause and the consequence of violence and, in
particular, of human rights violations" (E/CN.4/1995/111, para. 77).

119. In its report of October 1996, the Commission on Rationalization of
Expenditure and Public Finance, an official advisory body, stated that
the current level of impunity was greater than 99.5 per cent. The
Commission asserted that in Colombia a mere 20 per cent of offences were
reported and that of these only 5 per cent lead to the preferment of
charges by the Office of the Public Prosecutor. The members of the
Commission also maintained that barely one out of every 100 offences
committed reaches the trial stage. According to the People's Advocate,
these figures have remained more or less constant in recent years.
Similarly, the Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and
lawyers, who visited the country at the end of 1996, said in his report
on the visit that failure to properly investigate and prosecute human
rights violations, both at civil courts and, in particular, at military
courts, was the most serious concern with respect to the administration
of justice in Colombia (E/CN.4/1998/39/Add.2, first paragraph of
chapter V).

120. In the field of human rights, impunity has assumed alarming
proportions. The Human Rights Unit of the Office of the
Procurator-General of the Nation, established in December 1994, reports
that between October 1995 and September 1997 the unit witnessed just
260 trials. On 30 September 1997, 137 of these were at the preliminary
proceedings stage and 82 at the examination stage. These
trials concerned 27 massacres, 30 enforced disappearances, 88 homicides,
17 disappearances followed by the homicide of the victim and a further
17 punishable offences.

121. Impunity has been further strengthened by the fact that the great
majority of proceedings for human rights violations and war crimes in
which serving members of the armed forces and police appear as
defendants have to date come under the jurisdiction of the military
criminal courts. Under the Colombian Constitution, the investigation and
trial of crimes committed by serving military and police personnel "and
related to their service" are the responsibility of the military courts.
An excessively broad interpretation of the sphere of military
jurisdiction meant that for many years it was assigned punishable acts
which had no functional relation of any kind with the normal tasks of
the armed forces. As a result of this interpretation, proceedings for
crimes against humanity were removed from the jurisdiction of the
ordinary courts.

122. As the two Special Rapporteurs on torture and on extrajudicial
executions stated in their joint report (E/CN.4/1995/111, para. 87),
military criminal justice in Colombia is harsh in the case of violations
of police or military regulations, whereas in respect of offences
against the civilian population it is affected by cover-ups, partiality
and the pressuring of witnesses. This bias has taken the form of
persistent leniency on the part of the State in punishing members of the
armed forces who commit human rights violations or infringe humanitarian
standards. The Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and
lawyers has said in his report that active-duty officers try their own
subordinates for human rights offences committed against civilians. In
his view they lack the necessary independence and impartiality to try
cases in which members of the same body are involved
(E/CN.4/1998/39/Add.2, chap. V).

123. The Office of the High Commissioner in Colombia has observed that,
even after Constitutional Court decision C-358/97 of 5 August 1997
became enforceable, restricting the scope of the jurisdiction of the
armed forces and police, the latter has continued to protect persons
responsible for punishable acts which have no connection with military
or police service. The Office observed this in two recent cases. The
first was the massacre of 20 indigenous inhabitants in December 1991 on
the El Nilo estate in the municipality of Caloto (Department of Cauca);
in the relevant proceedings the Inspector-General of Police rejected the
application for transfer to the ordinary courts and ordered the officer
accused to be released. The second was the enforced disappearance, in
October 1987, of 18 persons who were seen for the last time in the
Magdalena Medio area. In the relevant trial high-ranking army officers
and other military personnel appeared as defendants, but were acquitted
at first instance by a judicial decision of 18 July 1997.

124. Decisions of the Disciplinary Division of the Supreme Council of
the Judiciary handed down subsequent to the ruling of the Constitutional
Court and relating to the scope of military criminal jurisdiction still
appear to be at variance with the court's case law in this regard. The
armed forces have told this Office that the Military High Court had
transferred 33 cases of military personnel accused of various offences
to the ordinary courts.

(b) _Regional justice_

125. Regional justice as it is known was established by Decrees
Nos. 2266 and 2271 of 1991, which converted to permanent status the
provisions which had been issued in 1988 under the emergency powers of
the state of siege, to organize what was termed public order
jurisdiction. Regional justice was originally established for a period
of 10 years as from 10 July 1992. Act No. 270 of 1996 reduced this
period stating that in any case its jurisdiction would not extend beyond
30 June 1999.

126. The system of regional justice covers a wide range of offences
which include terrorism, conspiring to commit an offence, abduction,
extortion, torture, threats, homicide, threats and wounding for
terrorist purposes, rebellion and sedition.

127. The regional justice system enables judicial officers and witnesses
to act without revealing their identity, practically enabling them to
remain anonymous, does away with public hearings, unduly extends the
deadlines for the investigation and restricts to the fullest possible
extent the grounds for provisional release, to the grave detriment of
the right to a proper trial (see paragraphs 61-63), the presumption of
innocence and the right of defence. In the opinion of the People's
Advocate, regional jurisdiction places severe restrictions on
fundamental rights and has not been effective in combating delinquency
and impunity.

128. The concealment of identity, applied in the actual proceedings of
regional justice, has been justified as a means of protecting the lives
and integrity of the judicial officers and witnesses who take part in
the trial. This is achieved, however, at the cost of denying the defence
any possibility of examining the impartiality of the prosecutor, judge
or magistrate conducting the trial, and hence denying it grounds for
challenging his right to officiate.

129. The Office of the Attorney-General of the Nation has observed
irregularities in regional justice proceedings which, in its view, may
constitute a common practice, such as including in a trial, under
different codes or keys, a single unidentified deponent, thus making it
appear that his statements come from several witnesses. Another
irregular procedure is to take new evidence from an unidentified witness
who has already made a statement, making it public this time in order to
make the second statement seem to come from a different person who
confirms what was said by the first witness.

130. In practice, the functioning of regional justice has made it easier
for members of the armed forces and police, acting as "faceless
witnesses" in trials, to make unsubstantiated accusations against
persons whom they have come to consider as subversive, although they are
engaged in lawful activities, because of their work in support of human
rights or in the social or trade-union sphere.

131. In addition to what has been described above, the concern of many
defence lawyers has been made public about the fact that, in some trials
and under the cover of concealed identity, persons belonging to the
State intelligence services or recognized informers of the official
security bodies have become principal, if not sole witnesses. This type
of situation was admitted by the Office of the Procurator-General of the
Nation in August 1997, when it discovered that in proceedings against
members of the Workers' Trade Union (USO) one of the unidentified
witnesses was an army and National Police informer who had made
informing his regular means of livelihood.

132. As a result of the activities of the regional prosecutors and
judges, many Colombians have suffered severe violations of their
fundamental rights by being linked to proceedings at an advanced stage
of investigation and thus being deprived of an opportunity to defend
themselves, being subjected to measures of restraint on the basis of
confessions obtained under pressure or opportunist denunciation, and
finding themselves deprived of their freedom for excessive periods,
without trial or conviction.

(c) _Restriction of the effectiveness of the remedy of habeas corpus_

133. The effectiveness of the remedy of habeas corpus is currently
restricted by provisions which were initially adopted as emergency
legislation for the state of internal disturbance, and subsequently made
part of permanent legislation by Congress. According to the laws in
force, a decision on habeas corpus may only be taken by criminal judges,
and applications for the release of a person who is legally deprived of
his freedom must be formulated solely within the proceedings in
questions. Both restrictions are contrary to article 9, paragraph 4, of
the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

(d) _Situation in prisons_

134. The figures of the National Penitentiary and Prison Institute also
give a clear picture of the crisis in the legal system. The prison
population in Colombia numbered 40,617 in May 1997, distributed among
176 establishments designed to house 28,332 persons, thus exceeding the
State's prison capacity by some 42 per cent. According to the Office of
the People's Advocate, 45 per cent of the prison population consists of
persons who have been charged and are awaiting trial.

135. During 1997, there were more than 50 revolts led by prisoners
demanding decisive action to deal with the overcrowding to which they
were subjected, effective sanctions against administrative corruption
within prisons, improvements in medical care, genuine access to social
rehabilitation programmes and the allocation of sufficient resources to
expedite the operation of the judicial system.

136. Women prisoners have also made repeated complaints concerning the
situation of their children, the constant abuses committed by warders
against them during searches and the failure to comply with the legal
provisions concerning marital visits (see section III, "Follow-up of
international recommendations by the Colombian State"). [*_back to the
contents_*


*III. FOLLOW-UP OF INTERNATIONAL RECOMMENDATIONS BY THE COLOMBIAN STATE *

137. The Office of the High Commissioner has noted that considerable,
but insufficient, efforts have been made by the Colombian Government and
State to overcome the serious situation with regard to human rights and
humanitarian law in Colombia.

138. The Colombian Government has informed the Office that the principal
courses of action adopted by it to overcome the human rights crisis are
aimed at the implementation of the recommendations deriving from the
various United Nations bodies and other international organizations. It
has further stated that the limited success achieved through the
measures adopted is due to the persistent character of the violence, the
intensification of the armed conflict and the short period which has
elapsed since the measures were initiated.

139. Among the governmental initiatives particular attention should be
drawn to those aimed at exploring possibilities of a process of
political negotiation concerning the armed conflict. To this end the
Government appointed two officials to report to it on the matter. In
addition, on the Government's initiative Congress enacted, in late 1997,
a law establishing the National Peace Council, which will be responsible
for putting State policies to end the conflict on a permanent footing
and working towards national reconciliation.

140. Taking into account the recommendations made by various mechanisms
of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights and by the Human Rights
Committee, the Government did not declare a state of emergency in 1997.
The last state of internal disturbance was declared in November 1995 and
continued until July 1996, although its provisions remained in effect
until 25 October 1996.

141. Since its establishment in Colombia, the Office has been invited to
participate in the activities of the Commission for Analysis and Advice
on the Implementation of the Recommendations of the International Human
Rights Bodies, established by Presidential Decree No. 1290 of 31 July
1995. Wit services are scarce, particularly in rural areas, while the
electricity network has grown considerably.

4. _Wages and employment_

81. Unemployment has increased considerably, from 7.8 per cent in 1990
to over 12 per cent at the end of 1997. Young people and women are most
vulnerable to unemployment. A labour protection model which is obsolete
in its conception still exists; it is geared to a pattern of stable
employment (rather than stable income) with subsidies going mainly to
permanent workers or employees, which seems to be an obstacle in
combating unemployment. There are many aspects of the Colombian and
world economy which would appear to make a review of the protection
system necessary, so that there are simultaneous guarantees of full and
undiscriminating respect for the right to work and to an income, and of
national economic growth, which is inevitably linked to the new context
of the world economy.

82. Another worrying aspect of labour management in Colombia is the
number of children and young people who work. It is estimated that
nearly 2.5 million children under 18 years of age are working, presented
to Congress the bill on reform of the Military Penal Code which the
drafting committee had submitted in 1996. The Office lent its assistance
to the inter-agency commission responsible for the final version of the
bill. However, not all its recommendations were accepted. The bill does
not expressly establish the non-applicability of the ground of due
obedience for cases in which orders giving rise to human rights
violations have been carried out. It also limits the intervention of the
claimant for criminal indemnification in military proceedings. It should
also be noted that the trial of senior military officers in a single
instance by the Supreme Court of Justice constitutes a violation of
article 14 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
In addition, the bill does not fully develop the principle of the
independence and autonomy of judges, since the military judges are
appraised by the operational commanding officers. At the end of 1997
Congress postponed consideration of the bill until March 1998.

144. Attention should also be drawn to the Constitutional Court's
decision of 5 August 1997 ruling against the extension of the criminal
jurisdiction of the police and armed forces to cover acts going beyond
service-related offences. In the Court's view, such an extension exceeds
the limits which the Constitution has imposed on the sphere of
competence of the military courts. According to the above decision,
these courts must not and may not try criminal acts, such as crimes
against humanity, which are completely at variance with the
constitutional responsibilities of the armed forces and national police
and constitute crimes of exceptional gravity. Consequently, proceedings
for extrajudicial executions, torture, other violations of human rights
and other extremely serious conduct in which military or police
personnel appear as defendants must be heard by the ordinary courts. The
Office of the High Commissioner has been informed that a committee
composed of a number of institutions, including the Office of the
Procurator-General of the Nation, is evaluating cases which, pursuant to
decision C-358/97, should be transferred from military jurisdiction to
the ordinary courts. The Criminal Affairs Division of the Government
Procurator's Office (_Procuraduría Delegada para el Ministerio Publico_)
reported that, following the Court's decision, the Division had
requested the military courts to transfer to the ordinary courts, on
grounds of jurisdiction, 232 cases currently within military
jurisdiction. As of 29 January 1998, the military courts had transferred
141 of the requested cases and refused to transfer 26; 65 cases were
still being considered.

145. The Office of the High Commissioner drew the authorities' attention
to the advisability of taking account of the recommendations of the
various bodies and special mechanisms of the United Nations on the
elimination of the regional justice system before the time limit set by
law, and on the need to ensure in all trials procedure consistent with
the guarantees laid down by the international instruments. Nevertheless,
in a communication of 19 September 1997 addressed to the Director of the
Office, the Minister for Foreign Affairs said that the Colombian State
had given regional justice "a binding time limit", which will expire in
1999. According to the Minister, this time limit "has been considered
necessary in order to implement the gradual dismantling of this
jurisdiction". The Office is following closely the debates on a bill,
currently before Congress, which would terminate regional justice before
the time limit referred to by the Government.

146. The High Commissioner acknowledges the steps taken by the Colombian
Government to overcome the dramatic situation facing human rights
activists. Prominent among them was Presidential Directive No. 011,
which recognizes the legitimacy of the work of the human rights NGOs and
the contributions which these organizations are making to the rule of
law. However, the Office in Colombia is duty-bound to state that the
conditions in which the activists are working, summarized in this
report, demonstrate that the Government's efforts to protect them have
proved insufficient. What are needed are specific measures to control
public officials who transgress the guidelines contained in the
Presidential Directive, to provide effective protection for human rights
activists and to prevent further abuses against them.

147. The Ministry of the Interior has a programme of special protection
for witnesses and threatened persons, which was allocated substantial
resources at the beginning of 1998. However, the programme requires even
greater human, logistic and financial resources in order to function
more effectively.

148. The Government also introduced a bill characterizing the offence of
enforced disappearance of persons. The High Commissioner regrets that
most of the recommendations and observations made by her Office in
Colombia within the committee which drafted the bill have not been taken
into account in the final text. In a communication of 12 December 1997,
the Minister for Foreign Affairs explained to the Director of the Office
the Government's reasons for not including in the bill several of the
suggestions that had been made to it. The Office observes that the
definition of the offence contained in the bill is not in conformity
with the relevant international instruments. In addition, in the
proposed provisions due obedience as a ground for exemption is not
excluded, the military courts are not declared incompetent to try
persons accused of the offence of enforced disappearance, the exclusive
competence of the ordinary judges to try this offence is not established
and the right of the victims to indemnification is not recognized. This
bill has not yet been approved by the legislature.

149. On the question of displacement, the Government approved Act No.
387 of 18 July 1997, which seeks to respond to the serious problem
created by the enforced migration of thousands of Colombians. This Act
created a nationwide system for dealing with the displaced population
and established institutional competence and sources of financing to
tackle the problem. At the beginning of 1998, the Government adopted a
plan of action, within which 40 billion pesos are allocated to efforts
to improve the serious situation of the displaced population and to
enhance institutional coordination. However, the policies adopted do not
include measures ensuring the effective performance by the State of its
duties in respect of displacement and displaced persons. The attention
given to displaced persons is inadequate, and the lack of coordination
between the various bodies dealing with the problem renders most of
their activities ineffective. In addition, there are serious
deficiencies in governmental measures to deal with problems such as
return and resettlement. There are also serious shortcomings with regard
to the granting of guarantees and special protection for persons
displaced by violence. The Colombian Government has invited UNHCR to
cooperate in the search for solutions.

150. Since 1988, special procedures of the United Nations Commission on
Human Rights have recommended that the Colombian State adopt measures to
combat the phenomenon of paramilitary activity effectively. The
United Nations Human Rights Committee reiterated that recommendation in
its report of 3 May 1997 (CCPR/C/79/Add.76, para. 31).

151. In the face of the increase in paramilitary activity at the end of
1997, the Government announced a series of measures to combat it and the
President of the Republic demanded that the armed forces give priority
to action to combat paramilitary groups. Among the measures adopted is
the establishment of a "search corps" composed of various State
agencies, whose objective is to hunt down members of such groups. In
addition, in an information campaign in the press, a monetary reward was
offered for the arrest of a number of paramilitary leaders. In January
1998, the General Command of the armed forces published a document
entitled "General strategy of the armed forces", in which undertakings
to combat paramilitary activity are given. Nevertheless, the Office has
been informed that some 400 warrants have been issued by the Public
Prosecutor for the arrest of members of paramilitary groups but none of
these wanted persons has been apprehended by the police or the armed
forces. The armed forces informed the Office that they had arrested 35
paramilitaries and released 45.

152. In November 1997, the Constitutional Court declared enforceable
Decree No. 356 of 1994, which established the "Special vigilante and
private security services", formerly known as "Convivir" associations.
The decision ordered the restricted-use weapons issued to these groups
to be returned to the General Command of the armed forces. According to
the Office of the Superintendent of Private Vigilante and Security
Groups, as of 15 December 1997, 237 of the 310 officially registered
weapons had been returned. In view of reports of abuses by persons
engaged in these services, the Government suspended the establishment of
new security associations as from 13 August 1997 and until such time as
the reported irregularities were investigated. On 10 February 1998, the
Government informed the press that, on the basis of the conclusions
reached in the investigation, the licences of 15 "Convivir" associations
had been cancelled and that the licences of a further 69 would not be
renewed; of this number more than 15 are being investigated by the
Superintendent of Private Vigilante and Security Groups. Within the
framework of its advisory functions, the Office stressed that
consideration should be given to the possibility of repealing the
provisions of the above-mentioned Decree, bearing in mind the
recommendations made to Colombia by the United Nations Human Rights
Committee and other protection mechanisms. However, the executive did
not consider it necessary to repeal the provisions of Decree No. 356,
and on 16 December 1997 it adopted new regulations. According to these
regulations, vigilante and security services are forbidden to engage in
any activity which infringes the right to privacy, the inviolability of
the home and the free movement of persons. They are also forbidden to
employ restricted-use weapons or exclusive-use weapons of the armed
forces and to encroach on the sphere of competence reserved for the
legitimate authorities. The Decree also stipulates that the
Superintendent of Private Vigilante and Security Groups may not
authorize such services in zones of conflict.

153. On 28 October 1997, Congress, by Act No. 408, approved the
Inter-American Convention to Prevent and Punish Torture. The Convention
is awaiting ratification.

154. In November 1997, the Colombian Government introduced a bill for
the reform of the Juvenile Code. Several national and international
institutions for the defence of the rights of the child, including
UNICEF, have suggested a more far-reaching analysis of the subject, and
also amendments to several aspects of the bill, in order to ensure that
the new code is in conformity with the provisions contained in the
International Convention on the subject. The suggestions made relate to
the recruitment of juveniles into the armed forces, child labour, the
administration of juvenile justice and adoption procedures. The bill is
to be discussed at the next legislative session of Congress.

155. Congress approved Act No. 418 of 26 December 1997, which prohibits
the recruitment of persons under the age of 18 into the armed forces.
However, the law allows for the recruitment of persons over 16 years of
age with parental consent, although, as minors, they may not be sent to
combat zones or used in armed confrontations.

156. In December 1997, Congress passed a law establishing an
"alternative sanction" scheme for the prison population with benefits
such as conditional release, leave passes and the commutation of prison
terms into community service, with a view to alleviating prison
overcrowding. This legislation, while providing no comprehensive answer
to the huge prison problem, has aroused great expectations among
prisoners and defence lawyers alike. Early in 1998, the Government
announced plans for the building of new prisons, with the possible use
of private capital.

157. A number of State institutions have developed programmes to promote
a culture of coexistence and peace. Special assistance was offered to
the Office of the High Commissioner on the occasion of Human Rights Day
on 10 December with promotional messages in the mass media. The police
and armed forces training programmes have continued and been
strengthened, for which the cooperation of UNDP and the Office have been
requested.

158. The Office of the People's Advocate has done important work, and
has published its fourth annual report to the Colombian Congress, for
1997. The Office of the High Commissioner received the support of the
People's Advocate and a number of field visits were carried out jointly
with or in cooperation with him.

159. Both the Office of the Procurator-General and that of the
Attorney General of the Nation are working to strengthen their special
human rights units and to improve general efficiency in action to combat
impunity. However, both institutions are facing serious organizational
and budgetary problems. The Office has provided open and continuous
support to both institutions, within their respective areas of competence.

*IV. ACTIVITIES OF THE OFFICE OF THE UNITED NATIONS HIGH COMMISSIONER IN
COLOMBIA *

160. The Office conducts its activities within the framework of the
Agreement of 29 November 1996 between the Colombian Government and the
United Nations (E/CN.4/1997/11, annex). The liaison unit set up by the
Office of the President to facilitate the activities of the Office of
the High Commissioner has cooperated effectively in establishing
relations with the various government institutions.

161. Between April and November 1997, the Office of the High
Commissioner, as part of its monitoring activities, received more than
1,350 complaints from individuals, NGOs and government and State
institutions. These complaints were received at the facility in Santafé
de Bogotá and in the course of visits by staff to various regions of the
country (Antioquia, Arauca, Bolívar, Caquetá, Cauca, Chocó,
Cundinamarca, Guaviare, Norte de Santander and Tolima). Some of these
visits were undertaken jointly with national authorities, NGOs and
church officials. In the course of a preliminary check to ascertain the
veracity of the complaints, about 140 cases were submitted in writing to
the competent national bodies and the Colombian Government. The Office
intervened immediately when it received reports of serious cases calling
for urgent action and got the competent authorities to provide victims
with the necessary protection in some cases.

162. In forwarding complaints to the authorities, the Office coordinated
its efforts with the thematic mechanisms of the Commission on Human
Rights to ensure the follow-up of cases of extrajudicial executions,
torture and enforced disappearance. The Government replied to many of
these requests by indicating the judicial or disciplinary authority
dealing with the case and the stage which the proceedings had reached.
In several cases, the Government simply presented the military
authorities' version of the facts designed to discredit the initial
account.

163. The most significant activities of the Office in connection with
its advisory functions concerned the follow-up to various pieces of
draft legislation, including the bill on the reform of the Military
Penal Code, the bill on enforced disappearance and the bill on internal
displacement, the latter now having been passed. The Office was also
asked for its comments on human rights training programmes for the armed
forces and the police.

164. As part of its functions of monitoring observance of the
recommendations made to Colombia by various United Nations bodies and
mechanisms, the Office emphasized those on the disbanding of the rural
security and vigilante services, elimination of the regional justice
system, removal of offences constituting serious human rights violations
from the jurisdiction of the military criminal courts, rejection of the
concept of "due obedience" as exonerating the perpetrators of such
offences and the adoption of measures to deal with internal
displacement. These observations were made at meetings of the Commission
for Analysis and Advice on the Implementation of Recommendations of the
International Human Rights Bodies (see paragraph 141). The Office also
helped in evaluating Colombia's compliance with a number of agreements
on cases submitted to the Inter-American Commission on Human
Rights (IACHR).

165. During the period in question, the Office received more
than 200 invitations to attend various forums, seminars, conferences and
workshops on topics relating to the protection of human rights,
international humanitarian law and peace, aimed at broad sectors of the
State authorities and civil society. The Office attended more than 80 of
them as part of its civil society advisory functions.

166. The national and foreign media took an active interest in the
Office's work and asked the Director for statements and interviews. In
addition to responding to many of these requests, the Office issued
eight public statements.

167. The Office maintained continuous contact with the International
Committee of the Red Cross, as envisaged in the Agreement, in monitoring
breaches of international humanitarian law. Contacts were maintained, in
particular, with UNHCR representatives in order to coordinate action on
the serious displacement problem. The Office was frequently requested by
the authorities, NGOs and displaced communities to provide international
supervision and protection.

168. Of special importance were the meetings with the other
United Nations agencies present in Colombia to prepare the joint report
on Colombia, as requested by the Secretary-General of the
United Nations. The report focused on the joint strategy to promote
observance of economic, social, cultural, civil and political rights
throughout Colombian society.

169. An ongoing dialogue was also maintained with the competent
Colombian bodies, civil and military authorities, community
organizations and individuals, as well as with members of the diplomatic
corps and international agencies, in order to obtain an independent and
impartial assessment of the situation with regard to human rights and
international humanitarian law.

*V. CONCLUSIONS *

170. The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights thanks the
Government of Colombia for the facilities provided to the Office in
Colombia in the performance of its functions, and expresses appreciation
to all the national authorities for their support for its activities. It
also extends its thanks to all sectors of Colombian society for their
reception of the office and cooperation.

171. The High Commissioner thanks donor countries and organizations and
expresses the hope that their contribution will continue and grow, to
the benefit of the work of the Colombian Office.

172. The High Commissioner is deeply concerned at the gravity and scale
of the violations of human rights and breaches of international
humanitarian law reported by the Colombian Office. All of them can be
considered as serious, gross and systematic. Particularly deplorable are
the massacres, extrajudicial executions, murders, practice of torture,
enforced disappearances and kidnappings, threats and the enforced
displacement of the population.

173. The High Commissioner notes that the internal armed conflict is a
major cause of human rights violations, but that many violations of the
right to life, due process and freedom of opinion, association and
assembly occur outside that context. She recalls that the duty of the
State to guarantee human rights applies in all circumstances.

174. The High Commissioner deplores the fact that the parties to the
conflict continue to infringe the established norms of international
humanitarian law, in particular those aimed at the protection of
individuals not directly involved in the hostilities. The High
Commissioner also deplores the fact that one of the most serious
consequences of the armed conflict is the suffering inflicted on
thousands of civilians.

175. The High Commissioner deplores the high number of violent deaths
occurring in Colombia both within and outside the context of the armed
conflict. The High Commissioner notes that most violations of the right
to life have been attributed to paramilitary groups sometimes acting in
conjunction with, or with the acquiescence of, members of the armed
forces or police. She also condemns the social cleansing operations, the
main victims of which include the destitute and street children.

176. The High Commissioner also takes note of the submission to Congress
of the draft legislation on enforced disappearances, but regrets the
fact that most of the recommendations and observations made by the
Office to the governmental drafting committee have not been incorporated
in the final draft. Like the Working Group on Enforced and Involuntary
Disappearances (see E/CN.4/1998/43, para. 142), the High Commissioner
stated that the final text should fully comply with the provisions of
the Declaration on the Protection of All Persons from Enforced
Disappearance.

177. The High Commissioner views with concern the fact that abduction is
a widespread practice in Colombia and provides a livelihood for armed
groups, and most strenuously condemns this practice of which so many
individuals have been and continue to be victims in Colombia. She takes
note of the Presidential Programme for Kidnap Victims, which endeavours
to deal with this very serious problem.

178. The High Commissioner is particularly concerned at the alarming
increase in crimes committed by paramilitary groups. She takes note of
the Government's statements that such crimes do not represent an
official policy. She also takes note of the measures recently adopted by
the Government to deal with the phenomenon of paramilitary activity.
However, the High Commissioner is deeply concerned at the fact that,
according to information gathered by her Office in Colombia, some
elements of the armed forces and police maintain links with members of
paramilitary groups. The High Commissioner is also disturbed to note the
ineffectiveness of the armed forces in taking decisive action against
such groups. The existence of associations of armed civilians operating
with legal authorization exacerbates the paramilitary phenomenon and
raises the level of violence.

179. The High Commissioner welcomes the reduction in the number of human
rights violations attributed to the armed forces and the police, and
takes note of the information provided by the armed forces to her Office
in Colombia on the plan to dismiss all military personnel involved in
crimes against humanity. She is concerned, however, by the fact that the
measures taken by the authorities have not succeeded in ensuring that
any support for the activities of paramilitary groups is investigated
and punished.

180. The High Commissioner is concerned at the high level of impunity
regarding violations of human rights and breaches of international
humanitarian law. She reminds the Colombian State of its obligation to
conduct exhaustive and impartial investigations of such acts, in order
to identify those responsible, bring them to justice, punish them and
compensate their victims, in accordance with the provisions contained in
the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Convention
against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or
Punishment and other international human rights instruments ratified by
Colombia.

181. The High Commissioner takes note of the submission to Congress of
the draft legislation on the reform of the Military Penal Code. She
notes with concern, however, that the draft does not include all the
international recommendations for ensuring that the operation of the
military criminal courts meets the requirements of the human rights
Covenants and that the ruling of the Constitutional Court has not yet
been given full effect.

182. Another major concern of the High Commissioner is the justice
system and its functioning. She deplores continued gross violation of
the guarantees of due process, particularly under the regional justice
system which the Colombian Government persists in retaining until 1999,
in flagrant violation of article 14 of the International Covenant on
Civil and Political Rights and contrary to the repeated recommendations
of various intergovernmental human rights bodies and mechanisms.

183. The High Commissioner notes that the Government has taken a number
of measures to deal with problems impeding or obstructing the enjoyment
of human rights. She also notes the existence in Colombia of numerous
human rights monitoring institutions and agents. It is regrettable,
however, that not all those initiatives follow international
recommendations, or the recommendations made by her Office on the basis
of the latter and of international standards, rules and practices. The
High Commissioner regrets that the Colombian Government appears unable
to provide effective support to human rights monitoring institutions and
agents.

184. The High Commissioner is disturbed at the prison situation in
Colombia, particularly the overcrowding in detention centres and
prolonged periods of pre-trial detention. She takes note of the recently
adopted alternative sanction scheme which is designed to alleviate this
problem.

185. The High Commissioner is concerned about the situation of minors in
Colombia, particularly that of street children and children displaced by
violence, all of whom are not only restricted in the exercise of their
fundamental rights, but are also exposed to situations which threaten
their lives and physical integrity. The conditions in which many
children, some of them less than 14 years old, work in order to meet
their needs and those of their families are unacceptable. The High
Commissioner condemns the recruitment of children into the armed forces
in contravention of the relevant international instruments and takes
note of the recent measures to deal with this problem.

186. The High Commissioner welcomes the adoption of the Presidential
Directive on recognition of the work of human rights advocates but
deplores the persecution to which they are subjected, particularly by
paramilitary groups, but also by some State officials who, being unaware
of the measures taken by the Government, mistakenly equate the work of
human rights advocates with subversive or criminal activities. The High
Commissioner also deplores the attacks against political activists,
State officials responsible for the protection of human rights, members
of the judiciary, trade unionists, members of voluntary organizations,
journalists and others, whoever the perpetrators may be.

187. The High Commissioner regrets the continued increase in the
enforced displacement of people in Colombia in recent years and the
failure of the measures adopted by the Government to eradicate the
causes of this phenomenon. She is also concerned at the fact that many
displaced persons suffer further human rights violations in the areas
where they settle. She also regrets that the State authorities have yet
to respond adequately to the problems raised by the failure to meet the
basic nutrition, health, housing, education and hygiene needs of
displaced persons, most of whom are women and children.

188. The High Commissioner notes that in Colombia, as in other
countries, enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights is not
entirely satisfactory, despite broad legal recognition. Certain negative
practices, and the lack of appropriate mechanisms to combat them, are
preventing many Colombians from exercising their economic, social and
cultural rights. It is clearly because of the spread and intensity of
the conflict, which entails the diversion of public resources and
results in enforced displacement of the population, that fewer and fewer
Colombians are able to exercise these rights.

189. The High Commissioner also notes the persistence of discriminatory
practices affecting in particular the indigenous and Afro-Colombian
population, as well as women, in Colombian society.

*VI. RECOMMENDATIONS *

190. The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, in
accordance with the provisions of the Agreement signed on 29 November
1996 and with the observations and recommendations made to the Colombian
Government by the Human Rights Committee, the Special Rapporteur on the
question of torture, the Committee against Torture, the Special
Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, the
Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances, the Special
Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers, the Committee on
the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, the Committee on the
Elimination of Discrimination against Women, the Committee on Economic,
Social and Cultural Rights, the Committee on the Rights of the Child,
the Representative of the Secretary-General on the internally displaced
persons and other views expressed by United Nations bodies, mechanisms
and agencies submits the following 19 recommendations:

_Recommendation No. 1_

191. The High Commissioner urges the Government to continue its efforts
to ensure the effective recognition, at all times and in all places, of
the fundamental rights proclaimed in the international instruments with
which Colombia has undertaken to comply by ratifying them. To achieve
these objectives, the High Commissioner calls on the Colombian
Government to take all necessary appropriate and effective measures.

_Recommendation No. 2_

192. The High Commissioner urges all parties to the conflict to abide by
the norms of international humanitarian law, particularly those for the
protection of persons not directly involved in hostilities. In
particular, combatants must stop carrying out executions, attacks on the
civilian population, enforced disappearances, kidnappings for ransoms,
the enforced displacement of persons and other equally reprehensible
practices.

_Recommendation No. 3_

193. The High Commissioner urges the Government and parties to the
conflict to respect the right to life and calls on the Government to
adopt or strengthen measures to ensure observance of that right. The
Government should also conduct independent and exhaustive investigations
into all violations of the right to life, bring the culprits to justice
and properly compensate their victims in order to put an end to the
spiral of violence and impunity.

_Recommendation No. 4_

194. The High Commissioner urges the Colombian State to ensure that the
draft legislation characterizing the offence of enforced disappearance
to be adopted at the next session of Congress conforms fully to the
provisions of the United Nations Declaration on the Protection of All
Persons from Enforced Disappearance.

_Recommendation No. 5_

195. The High Commissioner urges the Colombian State to ensure that the
Penal Military Code reform bill which is to be approved at the next
session of Congress conforms fully to the relevant international norms.

_Recommendation No. 6_

196. The High Commissioner urges the Government to continue to seek ways
of eradicating the widespread practice of abduction, and to arrest the
culprits and bring them to justice.

_Recommendation No. 7_

197. The High Commissioner urges the authorities to carry out an
effective policy for permanently disbanding paramilitary groups by
apprehending, trying and punishing those who inspire, organize, lead,
belong to, support and finance them. It is also vital to put an end to
the activities of armed civilian groups until recently known as
"Convivir associations", in order to eliminate their negative influence
on the human rights crisis, facilitate the application of the
humanitarian principle of distinction in armed conflict and enable the
State to have absolute control, at all times and in all circumstances,
over the use of force and weapons.

_Recommendation No. 8_

198. The High Commissioner recommends that the Government remove from
its armed forces and police any persons against whom there is reliable
evidence of having supported paramilitary groups, through acts or
omissions, or having participated or in any way acquiesced in their
activities.

_Recommendation No. 9_

199. The High Commissioner appeals to the Colombian authorities to take
more effective measures against impunity by investigating, trying and
punishing all those guilty of human rights violations and war crimes,
and recommends full compliance with the ruling of the Constitutional Court.

_Recommendation No. 10_

200. The High Commissioner invites the Colombian authorities to take
immediate steps to guarantee the full operation of the justice system,
particularly through the effective protection of members of the
judiciary and witnesses in proceedings concerning human rights violations.

_Recommendation No. 11_

201. The High Commissioner recommends that the Colombian State abolish
the regional justice system forthwith, so that all proceedings can be
conducted impartially and in public, with full observance of the
guarantees of due process, particularly the right to a defence and the
presumption of innocence.

_Recommendation No. 12_

202. The High Commissioner urges the Government to improve prison
conditions so that they conform to the relevant international standards.

_Recommendation No. 13_

203. The High Commissioner urges the Government, armed groups and
society in general to ensure that children in Colombia enjoy those
rights accorded to them in various international treaties, particularly
the Convention on the Rights of the Child. All parties to the conflict
are requested to refrain from recruiting children and to expedite
demobilization procedures. She also recommends that a study of the
problem of children in Colombia should be carried out with a view to
finding appropriate solutions.

_Recommendation No. 14_

204. The High Commissioner recommends that the Colombian authorities
ensure proper recognition of the right of human rights advocates to
conduct their activities without interference or unlawful hindrance, and
without fear for their lives, physical integrity or freedom. The
authorities are also urged to guarantee the effective exercise of
political rights, freedom of thought and expression, and trade-union
freedom, and prevent and punish illegal or arbitrary acts against
persons exercising those rights.

_Recommendation No. 15_

205. The High Commissioner urges the authorities to continue to seek
effective measures for preventing enforced displacement, protecting the
lives and physical integrity of displaced persons and guaranteeing the
freedom and safety of their support organizations. They should also
implement policies to ensure the effective exercise of the rights of
displaced persons to proper nutrition, medical care, housing and
education, both in their present settlements and after their return to
their places of origin.

_Recommendation No. 16_

206. The High Commissioner urges the Government to increase its efforts
to guarantee the whole population throughout Colombia the full exercise
of economic, social and cultural rights in accordance with the
international treaties ratified by Colombia.

_Recommendation No. 17_

207. The High Commissioner particularly urges the authorities to take
account of the recommendations of treaty bodies and special mechanisms
of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights.

_Recommendation No. 18_

208. The High Commissioner urges the Government to redouble its efforts
to support publicly, with adequate resources and concrete action, the
institutions, including the Office of the Attorney-General of the Nation
and the Office of the People's Advocate, working to ensure the
observance of human rights and the rule of law. Similarly, the High
Commissioner urges it to support the bodies responsible for the
administration of justice, including the Office of the
Procurator-General of the Nation, in their task of investigating
violations of human rights and of bringing to trial and convicting those
responsible.

_Recommendation No. 19_

209. The High Commissioner urges the Government, the parties to the
conflict and Colombian society to continue to explore ways of bringing
about national reconciliation and a just and stable peace based on the
observance of human rights and compliance with the international
instruments recognizing and guaranteeing them, and thus meet the needs
of Colombian society as a whole.

_Notes_

1. See the agreement on the establishment of an Office of the
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in Colombia
(E/CN.4/1997/11, annex).

2. Fourth report of the People's Advocate to the Congress of Colombia,
Santafé de Bototá, 1997, p. 214.

3. "_Colombia, derechos humanos y derecho internacional humanitario_:
1996", Colombian Commission of Jurists, annual reports series, p. 45.

4. Newspaper accounts compiled by the Colombian Commission of Jurists.

5. Fourth report of the People's Advocate to the Congress of Colombia,
Santafé de Bogotá, 1997, p. 214.

6. Ibid., pp. 59-60. 

© Copyright 1996-2000
*Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights*
*Geneva, Switzerland *