FIRST JUDICIAL PROCESS AGAINST EX-PARAMILITARY

C O N F I D E N T I A L BOGOTA 011301

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/18/2016
TAGS: KJUS PGOV PINR PREL PTER CO
SUBJECT: FIRST JUDICIAL PROCESS AGAINST EX-PARAMILITARY
BEGINS

Classified By: Ambassador William B. Wood.
Reasons: 1.4 (b) and (d)

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SUMMARY
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1. (C) GOC prosecutors started the "justice" phase of the
peace process with the paramilitaries by taking the "version
libre" (confession) of a mid-level commander on December 14.
Prosecutors will take the confessions of an additional three
ex-paramilitaries over the next few days, including Salvatore
Mancuso, whose "version libre" is expected to start on
December 19. JPL Unit Director Luis Gonzalez told us on
December 14 that these four are the first tranche of planned
version libres by the 18 ex-paras who "ratified" their intent
to participate pursuant to GOC Decree 2898. He said
prosecutors will next turn to the ex-paras held in Itagui
maximum security prison. End summary.

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Version Libre Process Begins
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2. (C) The Fiscalia's Justice and Peace Law (JPL) Unit will
take the voluntary confession, or "version libres," of four
paramilitary leaders in the next few days. The first to
confess is a 32-year-old mid-level paramilitary leader,
Wilson Salazar (AKA "El Loro"),who was the second-in-command
of the Julio Peinado Becerra Front that operated in southern
Cesar and Bolivar Departments. Sanchez's version libre
started on December 14 in Barranquilla. He was previously
sentenced to 19 years in prison for a murder in southern
Cesar.


3. (C) Salvatore Mancuso's version libre begins on December

19. The version libres of mid-level paramilitary leaders
Jhon Mario Salazar (AKA "El Pecoso" or "El Gordo") from the
Catatumbo Bloc and Carlos Mario Montoya (AKA "Arbolito" or
"Arnold") from the Pacific Bloc will take place on December
15 and 19, respectively. JPL Unit Director Luis Gonzalez
told us Mancuso had been calling to pressure him to begin his
"version libre" as soon as possible.


4. (C) Gonzalez said the version libre process involved
significant legal challenges. In the case of Mancuso, it was
not easy to trace the history of a criminal life that went
back 18 years. Prosecutors had already talked to over 1,000
victims or witnesses. 'El Pais' newspaper reported on
December 6 that victims have accused Mancuso of over 650
criminal actions: 150 relating to forcible expulsion from
lands, and the rest relating to killings and other crimes.
The process also involved serious administrative and security
challenges; ensuring the safety of a criminal like Mancuso
was a headache, he said.

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The Judicial Process
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5. (C) Gonzalez outlined the "version libre" process:

-- Confession by the demobilized paramilitary. Prosecutors
and victims have the opportunity to ask about events
attributed to the defendant but omitted from his statement.

-- Prosecutors formulate charges. There is no timeframe to
indict.

-- A JPL magistrate hears the basis for the charges. Sixty
days later, which can be extended to 120 days, prosecutors
must file charges. The accused can accept or reject them.
Any charge the accused rejects will be processed through the
regular justice system; if proven, the accused loses JPL
benefits.

-- If the accused accepts the charges, the magistrate has 20

days to hold a hearing, with an additional 10 days to pass
sentence, including reparations.

-- The convicted defendant will then be taken to a detention
center. His sentence will be between 5 to 8 years,
discounted by time already served and time spent in Ralito or
other concentration zones (a maximum of 18-months).

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Dynamics Behind Decision to Begin Version Libres
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6. (C) The Fiscalia's slow progress in hearing JPL
confessions had generated concerns among GOC officials, who
feared the government was incurring a high political cost, as
well as tension with the paramilitaries. Peace Commissioner
Luis Carlos Restrepo charged December 8 that the Fiscalia's
delay "was one of the triggers of the most recent crisis."
National Prosecutor (Fiscal) Mario Iguaran responded by
blaming Restrepo for "blindly submitting a list to the
Fiscalia without proper identification and verification of
the individuals requesting Justice and Peace Law benefits,"
forcing the Fiscalia to spend additional time doing the
verifications. On December 8, President Uribe accelerated
the issuance of version libres when he repealed Decree 2898,
which had forced paramilitaries to "ratify" their decision to
participate in JPL. The requirement had been included in
August at the request of the Fiscalia, which hoped to use the
provision to gather evidence and statements from victims.

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Lack of Clear Strategy and Resources
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7. (C) Gonzalez told us the JPL Unit will begin taking the
version libres of the 18 ex-paras who had "ratified" pursuant
to Decree 2898, and would then turn to the ex-paras in
Itagui. He said, "At the end of the day, if they do not
confess to their crimes, it is their loss." Despite public
criticism of the Fiscalia, Gonzalez said his unit had
developed criminal cases against many former paramilitaries
who had previously faced no charges, noting that arrest
warrants were recently issued for 20 ex-paramilitaries in
Itagui. (Note: Now all the ex-paramilitaries in Itagui faced
criminal charges.) The Fiscalia had also obtained 400
additional arrest warrants for paras who appeared on the JPL
lists. When the Unit had received the list of 2,695 ex-paras
seeking JPL benefits from the Ministry of Interior and
Justice, only 300 had faced criminal charges.


8. (C) Gonzalez said he was concerned about the lack of
resources and support within and outside the Fiscalia.
Gonzalez said his prosecutors were getting around in public
buses because there was no money to pay for cars and
security. He had begged Iguaran for additional prosecutors
and resources for over a year, but he still had only 21
prosecutors. This was "simply not enough." He criticized
the Inspector General's Office (Procuraduria) and the
National Reconciliation and Reparations Commission (CNRR) for
their failures to help victims participate in the process,
noting that this task had also fallen to the Fiscalia. He
said the CNRR does not have the capacity to meet its
obligations under the JPL. In contrast, JPL Unit prosecutors
had interviewed over 5,000 victims.
WOOD