Colombia urged to ensure independent judiciary

[Judi Lynn]

Colombia urged to ensure independent judiciary
Crime and JusticeNews BriefColombialegal systemWorld NewsColombia urged to ensure independent judiciary
By agency reporter
9 Aug 2010

Colombia’s new government must ensure the independence of the country’s justice system, allowing it to bring to justice those responsible for human rights abuses committed during the country’s long-running armed conflict, Amnesty International has declared.

Juan Manuel Santos was inaugurated as President of Colombia on 7 August 2010, after winning a landslide victory in a second round of elections held on 20 June.

“If human rights abusers are to be held to account, urgent action also needs to be taken to stop the killing of and threats against witnesses, lawyers, judges, human rights defenders and prosecutors involved in human rights cases,” said Marcelo Pollack, Colombia researcher at Amnesty International.

A UN report on Colombia published earlier this year found that at least 300 people working as part of judicial investigations had been killed in the past 15 years.

Amnesty documented the killing, mainly by paramilitaries, of at least 8 human rights defenders and 39 trade unionists during 2009.

More:
http://www.ekklesia.co.uk/node/12809