Author: International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH)
Title: Colombia. The War is Measured in Litres of Blood
Summary: Colombia has been enduring an internal armed conflict for fifty years. In the conflict members of insurgent groups (guerrillas) have clashed with the National Army and paramilitary groups. Under these conditions, serious human rights violations and international crimes have been committed. Since November 1, 2002, Colombia is party to the Rome Statute, setting up the
International Criminal Court (ICC). According to the principle of complementarity established by that statute, Colombia is obliged to investigate and prosecute those responsible for the crimes
considered therein, namely, genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. The ICC went into operation in July 2002, when its Statute went into effect. Since ICC General Prosecutor took office in June, 2003 Colombia has been under "preliminary analysis", but this was made public only in 2006.
The International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and one of its member organizations in Colombia, the Jose Alvear Restrepo Lawyers Collective (CAJAR), have been working in research, advocacy, and support for victims of international crimes before the ICC since 2005.
According to article 15 of the Rome Statute, interested parties (victims, non-governmental
organizations, etc.) may submit to the ICC Office of the Prosecutor statements indicating crimes within the Court's jurisdiction. The FIDH and the CAJAR have submitted twelve communications of this kind to the ICC Office of the Prosecutor since June 2005.
During this period the FIDH and the CAJAR were engaged in dialogue with the ICC Office of the Prosecutor and they continue to do so. This communication and careful monitoring of the policy of the Prosecutor's Office with regard to the situations under preliminary analysis and particularly the situation in Colombia, has enabled the FIDH to monitor the evolution of
the analysis carried out by the ICC Office of the Prosecutor. One of the observations that has
emerged repeatedly during the dialogue between the FIDH and the ICC Office of the Prosecutor has been the need to identify the highest-level people responsible for the most serious crimes committed in Colombia which are under the jurisdiction of the ICC. It is appropriate to recall here that the ICC Office of the Prosecutor has made the investigation and prosecution of top commanders a key element of its policy. This is the context in which the FIDH transmitted
this report to the ICC Office of the Prosecutor along with two confidential attachments which identify those most responsible.
The preliminary analysis is governed by article 53, paragraph 1 of the ICC Statute. In accordance
with this provision, the ICC Office of the Prosecutor carries out analysis in three stages and in the following order: first, it must be determined whether crimes within the competence of the ICC have been committed; second, an analysis of admissibility is carried out, including analysis of the gravity of the phenomenon and the test of complementarity; finally, it is determined whether an investigation is in the interests of justice in the particular case.
Details: Paris: FIDH, 2012. 60p.
Source: Internet Resource: Accessed June 16, 2014 at: http://www.fidh.org/IMG/pdf/rapp_colombie__juin_2012_anglais_def.pdf
Year: 2012
Country: Colombia
URL:
Shelf Number: 132475
Keywords:
Criminal ProsecutionExtrajudicial Executions (Colombia)GuerrillasHuman RightsParamilitary GroupsViolence |
