COLOMBIA MOVES TO EXPEDITE IDENTIFICATION OF

UNCLAS BOGOTA 002526

SENSITIVE, SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PHUM PGOV PTER KJUS PREL CO
SUBJECT: COLOMBIA MOVES TO EXPEDITE IDENTIFICATION OF
VICTIMS OF DISAPPEARANCES

SUMMARY
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1. (U) Summary. The GOC presented on August 5 a new state
policy aimed at improving efforts to identify the remains of
victims of forced disappearances. The policy will dedicate
$48.3 million in investment and operations over five years,
which is projected to increase the GOC's capacity for genetic
identification by 253 percent. GOC officials hope this new
push at inter-agency cooperation will resolve more than
24,000 cases by 2014. Officials admitted difficulty in
assessing the scope of the problem, noting that half of the
cadavers identified are of persons not previously reported
missing. Queried by the diplomatic corps about Colombia's
adhesion to the UN Convention on Forced Disappearances, the
GOC stated its intention to seek congressional ratification
next year. End summary.

A NEW STATE POLICY ON DISAPPEARANCES
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2. (U) On August 6, Vice Foreign Minister for Multilateral
Affairs Adriana Mejia and Presidential Human Rights Program
Director Carlos Franco unveiled a new document issued by the
National Council for Economic and Social Policy (CONPES),the
Executive's highest body for issuing formal economic and
social policy. Franco called forced disappearances "the most
barbaric human rights abuse" that in Colombia has many
causes: paramilitary violence, competition among drug
traffickers, political intrigue, silencing of witnesses,
property disputes, and actions by state security forces.
Franco lauded a sound legal and institutional foundation for
Colombia's efforts to identify victims, but admitted that
poor coordination among agencies has resulted in sluggish
results--for example, just 2,400 identifications despite more
24,000 reports of missing persons. Franco also noted the
difficulty in estimating the total number of victims, as half
of those identified did not appear in the National Registry
of Disappeared Persons.


3. (U) Known as CONPES No. 3590, the policy seeks to
strengthen and consolidate existing databases and mechanisms
across seven government entities with operational
responsibilities for preventing forced disappearances and
identifying the remains of victims. The policy's objective
is to reduce the processing time of cases and increase the
number of cases in which the facts of the murder and possible
suspects are established. The plan calls for an immediate
increase in funding for operations ($2 million) and
investment in infrastructure ($3.7 million) in 2009.


4. (SBU) Privately, GOC officials told us that, despite the
commitment to fund the effort, there remained a substantial
need for international funding. One official lamented cuts
by some donors to these programs in recent years. (Note:
The Department of Justice technical assistance programs to
the Prosecutor General's Office include assistance in the
areas of forced disappearance investigations, exhumation, and
identification of victims remains.)

EXTRAJUDICIAL EXECUTIONS (EJEs)
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5. (U) In response to the presentation, a European ambassador
queried about the tendency of murders at the hands of state
security forces, citing NGO reports of increased
disappearances and EJEs. Franco said the available credible
data suggested that such cases were going down and that NGO
reports to the contrary failed to supply convincing evidence.

UN CONVENTION ON MISSING PERSONS
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6. (U) Queried by the GOC's willingness to ratify the UN's
International Convention for the Protection of All Persons
from Enforced Disappearance (signed by Colombia in September
2007),Franco said the Executive planned to submit the

necessary legislation for ratification to the Colombian
Congress in 2010. He added, however, that Colombia was
already in full compliance with the treaty.
Brownfield