The number of civilians murdered by Colombia’s military and subsequently portrayed as guerrilla fighters killed in combat operations is significantly higher than previously known, the transitional justice court that is investigating the so-called False Positives case has found.
According to the Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP), the court created in the 2016 peace agreement to investigate crimes committed during the conflict and prosecute those responsible for major human rights violations, at least 7,837 people were killed this way between 1990 and 2016. The previous figure declared by the court found 6,402 cases committed in the period 2002-08, during the hard-right government of Álvaro Uribe.
The findings were revealed by a JEP judge, Pedro Díaz, during court proceedings against ten former soldiers held in Apartadó, department of Antioquia. They are accused of carrying out a massacre of eight civilians – four adults and four minors – in the local community of La Resbalosa on 21 February 2005.
The JEP’s investigation into False Positives has revealed the scale of army killings of civilians during the armed conflict. Despite the high number of documented cases, many others could have been committed. Soldiers were pressured to demonstrate their fighting effectiveness, mainly presented in the number of kills made, which inflated the state’s success in combatting the FARC and other guerrillas. They were also offered incentives such as payments and holidays for carrying out the killings.
The increased figure is mainly accounted for by extending the time period in which cases were documented. As such, it is under the Uribe government that False Positives were particularly commonplace. Uribe has long been implicated in involvement with far-right paramilitary groups that collaborated with the army to commit atrocities including massacres, forced displacements and targeted killings of trade unionists, peasant leaders, students and activists.
The JEP allows former soldiers, guerrillas and third parties to receive reduced punishments – known as ‘restorative sentences’ – in return for testimonies in which they admit responsibility and express remorse. Those who deny responsibility but are then found guilty face being sentenced under the standard justice system, with jail sentences up to 20 years rather than the JEP’s eight-year maximum.