Timochenko, the former head of the FARC, acknowledged responsibility for more than 20,000 kidnappings in Colombia

“Timochenko”, the former leader of the extinct FARC guerrillas, acknowledged his responsibility for more than 20,000 kidnappings on Tuesday carried out by that guerrilla in Colombia, in a hearing before the victims and the court that judges the worst crimes of the Colombian conflict.

Sitting in front of several former hostages and their relatives in an auditorium in Bogotá, Rodrigo Londoño or ‘Timochenko’ accepted responsibility for those actsaccompanied by six other senior FARC commanders appointed by the Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP), born from the agreement that put an end to that guerrilla warfare.

On behalf of the 13,000 fighters who signed the peace agreement in 2016, the former rebel recognized “individual and collective responsibility in front of one of the most abominable crimes committed “ from that Marxist organization.

They were “the result of a policy that led to crimes against humanity and war crimes“said the leader of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) at the time of his disarmament.

Former guerrilla leaders Pablo Catatumbo, Julián Gallo, pastor Alape, Milton Toncel, Rodrigo Granda and Jaime Alberto Parra also participate in the hearing, which will last until Thursday.

justice

The PEC accused of over 21,000 kidnappings and other crimes such as torture committed between 1990 and 2016.

Politicians and soldiers who were kidnapped to force exchanges with jailed rebels heard the confession and objected to what they consider a “debt to contribute to the truth” by the authors.

Óscar Tulio Lizcano, kidnapped in 2000 when he was a Conservative MP, asked his “jailers” to clarify the whereabouts of the missing hostages.

“Tell us the truth. We have forgiven, but that does not mean that there is no justice, we want the truth, “said the 75-year-old former parliamentarian, who fled his kidnappers in 2008.

“These crimes were the product of a policy adopted by the secretariat [cúpula] of the FARC-EP “and” directly engaged by their subordinates, “said Judge Julieta Lemaitre, who presided over the session.

According to the peace agreement, the former guerrillas must repair those affected and tell the truth to avoid jail.

The court will take at least three months to impose penalties on the accused. If they think their confessions are insufficient, They could be sentenced to up to 20 years in prison.

In May, around 20 retired soldiers, including a general, acknowledged their participation in the murder of more than one hundred civilians to pass them off as guerrillas killed in combat on the border with Venezuela.

The court estimates that there have been at least 6,400 victims of this practice, known as “false positives”, which together with the kidnapping have martyred Colombia in the conflict of over six decades.

Source: AFP and Clarin

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