Former paramilitary leaders apologize to Colombia’s conflict victims
Former paramilitary leaders apologize to Colombia’s conflict victims
Jan 29, 2015 posted by Rebecca Florey
Three former heads of paramilitary organization AUC on Wednesday offered apologies to the victims of hundreds of their crimes.
“The physical, emotional and psychological pain caused to victims compels me to express remorse, forgiveness, deep sorrow and undeniable moral shame for everything we did in this fratricidal war. Gone are the pride and delusions of grandeur. Rest assured that this page of shame has already turned and we can say with certainty: Never again! ”
Those were the words Rodrigo Perez, alias “Julian Bolivar,” who spoke Wednesday at a Bogota court.
Perez, who was the top commander of the Central Bolivar Bloc (BCB) currently being held in prison, led a request for forgiveness offered by the various units that operated under his command. The apology was directed not only to the victims but also to the state institutions and society in general.
The BCB was a Colombian right-wing paramilitary organization and one of the largest members of the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC). Tens of thousands of cases of kidnappings, rape, massacres, extortion, drug trafficking and displacement, among other crimes, have been attributed to the AUC during its existence between 1997 and 2006.
More:
http://colombiareports.co/former-paramilitary-leaders-apologize-colombias-conflict-victims/
