FIDH and the Coordinación Colombia Europa Estados Unidos call upon the ICC Prosecutor to open an investigation into crimes against humanity committed in Colombia

On May 29th, FIDH and the Coordinación Colombia Europa Estados Unidos (CCEEU) presented in The Hague their report, entitled "Colombia: The war measured in litres of blood – “False-positives”, crimes against humanity: the impunity of the most responsible". This report demonstrates that extrajudicial executions committed in Colombia, known as "false-positives", constitute crimes against humanity, and that those who bear the greatest responsibility are not being investigated or prosecuted by the Colombian justice system.

On the 29 May 2012, during a public event organised in The Hague Institute for Global Justice, FIDH, CCEEU and Lawyers Without Borders (ASF) present their reports on international crimes committed in Colombia.

FIDH and CCEEU highlight the systematic and widespread character of the "false-positives" phenomenon in Colombia between 2002 and 2008, on account of which over 3000 civilians have been assassinated but were presented as having died “in action”. These acts were supported by army officials at the highest level, who not only failed to perform their duty to control personnel under their command but further encouraged such actions.

FIDH and CCEEU highlight the structural weaknesses of investigations and prosecutions that have been carried out in Colombia; no investigation has been made into the involvement of high level military officials responsible for extrajudicial executions, nor into the political authorities allegedly responsible for these crimes by omission. On the contrary, investigations have been carried out in an isolated manner. They have avoided the need to address the phenomenon as a crime against humanity, as well as the need to consider the systematic nature of the acts and the policies in which the perpetration of these crimes were founded. Moreover, acts designed to obstruct the course of justice are observable, whilst members of the judiciary, victims, witnesses and human rights organisations have suffered acts of intimidation and threats.

In light of these circumstances, and of the ICC’s guiding principles, in particular the principle of complementarity, FIDH and CCEEU call upon the ICC Prosecutor to open an investigation into these "false-positives", as those who bear the greatest responsibility for these crimes are not being investigated or prosecuted in Colombia.

To this end, at a meeting parallel to today’s public event, FIDH presented the ICC Prosecutor’s Office with a confidential list of the main alleged perpetrators of the crimes against humanity referred to in the report.

The report is available here

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