Colombian paramilitaries are to lay down their arms by January. – Demobilized paramilitaries are recycled into the conflict, the Colombian human rights lawyer Alirio Uribe Muñoz warned when he visited the Norwegian Human Rights House recently. Along with the UN and international human rights organisations he said that the rights of victims are not sufficiently respected in the demobilization process. (01-DEC-05)

The former president of the Lawyer´s Collective, “El Colectivo de Abogados ´Jose Alvear Restrepo´”, Alirio Uribe Muñoz, was invited to Norway by the Human Rights House Foundation (HRH). He is involved in preparing the establishment of a Peace- and Human Rights House in Colombia together with Colombian NGOs and HRH in Oslo.

Deadly force
Colombia’s forty-year internal armed conflict is accompanied by massive violations of human rights and international humanitarian law. The Colombian government recently announced that Norway supports the demobilization of paramilitaries, a deadly force responsible for countless assassinations, drug trafficking and forced displacement of hundreds of thousands of Colombians. According to Human Rights Watch, units of the Colombian military and police have continued to work with and tolerate the illegal paramilitary groups.

In his meetings with activists, politicians, journalists and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Alirio Uribe Muñoz explained why he and many other human rights defenders in Colombia and elsewhere advice the international community not to support the demobilization process.

AlirioOslo.JPGImpunity
– The crimes of the so-called demobilized paramilitaries are virtually unpunished. Many of them pick up their arms after they have been demobilized and continue to commit grave violations, Uribe Muñoz (far right) explained.

The Colombian human rights lawyer underlined the need for a critical observation of the process. Further, he said the process does not sufficiently respect the rights of victims to reparation and truth, a prerequisite for lasting peace and reconciliation. Critical voices have received threats, he said. Uribe Muñoz, who received the Martin Ennals Award in 2003, has himself received numerous threats throughout the years.

A number of actors, including international and Colombian human rights organisations and the UN High Commission for human rights in Colombia, have already warned that there are serious problems with the demobilization process. Amnesty International has reported that paramilitaries have been recycled into the conflict. The Organisation of American States, which is monitoring the demobilisation, has been criticised for its lack of objectivity and its loyalty towards the Colombian Government. UN High Commission for human rights in Colombia has pointed out the lack of focus on human rights and that demobilization has not aimed to ensure justice and reparations for the victims of paramilitary violence.

It’s not about the money
Alirio Uribe Muñoz made it clear that the actual amount of the support provided by the Norwegian Government to the demobilization process, was of little significance:

– What they need is not really money but political backing. That’s how this support is used. The Colombian authorities was quick to present the Norwegian support on their website as a legitimization of their policy, Uribe Muñoz said.

Should support civil society
Colombian human rights and peace NGOs defend individuals from human rights violations and seek to promote a peaceful solution to the armed conflict in the country. In doing so, they are often subject to harassment and persecution, and many have been assassinated. The Human Rights House Foundation (HRH) in Norway believes it is crucial that the Norwegian government helps support and protect peace and human rights defenders.

– Norway should not help legitimize this demobilization process that has serious shortcomings, said Borghild T. Krokan, Project Manager at the Human Rights House Foundation (HRH).
She said it is important to support sustainable peace initiatives, and pointed out that there are a number of solid peace initiatives from the Colombian civil society as well as recommendations by the UN in need of support.

HRH visited Colombia in June 2005 to consider the needs and possibilities of establishing a Peace- and Human Rights House in Colombia. The purpose of gathering human rights and peace NGOs under the same roof is to support and protect activists, make them more visible and accessible to victims of abuse and to the public, reduce costs and facilitate cooperation.