US embassy cable - 04BOGOTA5305

UNCLAS BOGOTA 005305 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DRL/PHD FOR KARA CUMBERLAND 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KDEM, PHUM, PGOV, PINR, PREL, CO 
SUBJECT: BOGOTA'S HUMAN RIGHTS AND DEMOCRACY FUND PROPOSAL 
 
REF: SECSTATE 65803 
 
1. Background: Colombia remains embroiled in a prolonged 
internal armed conflict now involving three major 
narcotics-funded terrorist organizations.  The conflict has 
fueled thousands of violations of human rights and 
international humanitarian law by the illegal armed groups 
and has led to a serious deterioration in the rule of law, 
particularly in the countryside.  A key USG goal in Colombia 
is to strengthen Colombian democracy's capacity to 
successfully confront human rights violations.  For example, 
human rights training for Colombian security forces has 
resulted in dramatic improvements.  Another important need is 
to strengthen the ability of the justice system and civil 
society to understand and apply basic principles of 
international humanitarian law (IHL). 
 
2. Purpose: Colombia has adopted many laws intended to 
protect IHL norms and prosecute their violations.  The Penal 
Code (Law 599) of 2000 specifies 30 crimes as IHL violations, 
the Military Penal Code of 1997 excludes from military penal 
jurisdiction several IHL violations, and the Uniform 
Disciplinary Code (Law 734) of 2002 makes reference to many 
IHL norms.  The effectiveness of these laws, however, depends 
on government authorities' understanding of what constitute 
IHL violations, according to both statutes and relevant 
judicial decisions.  Unfortunately, such key information is 
not readily accessible in Colombia.  For example, much 
important material on IHL norms and case studies is available 
only in English and French, there are obstacles to accessing 
relevant information from specialized internet sites, and 
other information is unavailable because of its length or 
cost. 
 
3.  Method: This project proposes the construction of a 
publicly accessible electronic database of international IHL 
jurisprudence that would include, for example, Spanish 
translations of verdicts of international tribunals and 
courts in cases involving IHL violations that mirror crimes 
occurring in Colombia.  The database would include analyses 
of such cases demonstrating how national and international 
law was applied in each case, how judicial authorities worked 
through the relevant facts and law, and how academics and 
other experts judged the process and ruling. 
 
4.  The project's first six months would be spent 
establishing the database with the technical support of 
LEGIS, a Latin American equivalent of Westlaw that operates 
in six countries and has been compiling legal databases since 
1952.  The process would include selection and 
standardization of consultation sources, establishment of 
criteria for searches and translation of relevant materials, 
and analysis of pertinent jurisprudence.  The database would 
include information and cases from tribunals such as those 
addressing IHL violations in Yugoslavia, Rwanda, East Timor, 
and Sierra Leone.  At the close of the first phase, project 
implementers would produce a pilot publication aimed at 
judicial officials that would provide an index of the 
database and explain its contents.  The project's second 
phase would consist of a quantitative and qualitative 
amplification of the database with a system for regular 
updates. 
 
5. Results: Access to this information will benefit 
Colombians working on IHL cases, including judges in 
specialized, circuit, and superior courts; judges and staff 
of the military justice system; national and regional human 
rights prosecutors; criminal and disciplinary investigators, 
judicial police; and human rights attorneys, law students, 
human rights and humanitarian workers. 
 
6. Implementing Organization:  The project will be run by the 
Institute for Human Rights and International Relations at 
Javeriana University in Bogota. 
 
7. Budget:  The project budget is estimated at USD 15,000, 
which will cover the initial 6-month phase.  The funds will 
finance the salaries of the director and his assistant (both 
bilingual lawyers) and an expert in legal English, as well as 
the initial pilot publication. 
WOOD