Colombia Fails Rights Test

(New York, February 5, 2002) -- The Colombian government has failed to satisfy human rights conditions on U.S. security assistance Human Rights Watch, the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA) and Amnesty International said in a briefing paper released today. The groups presented their findings at a meeting with the U.S. State Department on February 1.

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By the end of February, Secretary of State Colin Powell must decide if he can certify that the Colombian government has met these conditions. By law, he must certify before the U.S. government can release up to $625 million in new aid. If Secretary Powell determines that he cannot certify Colombia, aid would be suspended pending significant progress on improving human rights guarantees.  
 
Human Rights Watch, WOLA, and Amnesty International found overwhelming evidence of the Colombian government's failure to meet the human rights conditions. The human rights monitoring organizations found, among other things:  

 

• The Colombian government has failed to suspend members of the Colombian Armed Forces credibly alleged to have committed gross violations of human rights or to have helped paramilitary groups;  
   
  
• The Colombian Armed Forces, in particular the army and navy, continue to organize, coordinate with, share information with, support, and tolerate paramilitary groups;  
   
  
• The Colombian Armed Forces are not cooperating with civilian prosecutors and judicial authorities to investigate reports of abuses or to pursue and capture known paramilitaries.