US embassy cable - 05BOGOTA9727

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BOGOTA 009727 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/11/2015 
TAGS: KJUS, PTER, PREL, PGOV, CO, Demobilization 
SUBJECT: GOC,S EFFORTS TO CLARIFY CNRR,S DUTIES AND 
RESPONSIBILITIES 
 
Classified By: Ambassador William B. Wood. 
Reasons: 1.4 (b) and (d) 
 
 
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SUMMARY 
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1.  (C) President Alvaro Uribe and National Reparation and 
Reconciliation Commission (CNRR) President Eduardo Pizarro 
warned during the CNNR's official launch on October 4 that 
the commission would probably fall short in its efforts to 
give reparations to all victims.  The commission will hold 
its first closed door meeting on October 19)20 to define its 
regulations and identify the criteria for the selection of 
the two remaining commission representatives.  CNRR sources 
reported that the GOC authorized 1.5 billion pesos 
(approximately USD 700,000.00) for the commission's budget 
next year, but the challenge will be finding the necessary 
funds for the remainder of this year.  The Netherlands has 
agreed to pay for the salaries of three of the commission's 
five civil society members.  Meanwhile, the CNRR is trying to 
garner financial support from other international donors and 
the private sector.  End Summary. 
 
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CREATING REALISTIC EXPECTATIONS 
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2. (C) President Alvaro Uribe and CNRR President Eduardo 
Pizarro warned during the CNRR's official launch on October 4 
that it would probably fall short in its efforts to give 
reparations to all victims.  Uribe asserted that "total 
reparation will be impossible to achieve" because suffering 
transcends material compensation.  He added that "only 
remorse on the part of the victimizers can guarantee that the 
current situation of violence is not repeated."  Pizarro 
stated that one cannot believe there will be exceptionally 
large sums available to pay reparations to the victims of 
such a prolonged conflict, but the commission will try its 
best so a significant number can receive reparations.  He 
clarified that the funds would come primarily from the 
perpetrators and the rest from the national budget and the 
international community. 
 
3.  (C) Pizarro said the CNRR is not a truth commission.  He 
explained, however, that the commission could offer a 
"historic reconstruction" of the paramilitary phenomenon that 
could be broadly distributed and through which victims could 
feel there has been a "moral condemnation." 
 
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FIRST ORDER OF BUSINESS: REGULATIONS AND MEMBERSHIP 
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4.  (C) The CNRR will initially define its regulations and 
identify the criteria for the selection of the commission's 
two remaining representatives in its first closed door 
meeting on October 19)20.  The importance of defining 
promptly the CNRR's regulations is not only to clarify its 
vast responsibility of assisting in ensuring reparations and 
promoting reconciliation between victims and perpetrators, 
but also to finalize the executive branch's over two 
month-long effort to conclude draft regulation to implement 
the Justice and Peace (J&P) law.  Emboffs were told that the 
commission has been working closely with the executive branch 
on the reparations language of this decree and hopes to use 
the mid-October meeting to agree on the text. 
 
5.  (C) The CNRR is composed of six government officials and 
seven civil society members; two of the civil society 
victims' representatives have yet to be named.  CNRR sources 
told us that the commission has decided to address the issue 
of the criteria for the selection of the victims' 
representatives in the first general meeting because of its 
sensitivity.  The commission has already received many 
applications from interested organizations and members told 
Emboffs that various pressure groups are making the process 
difficult. 
 
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NEXT STEPS 
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6.  (C) During its initial months, the commission is expected 
to begin working on naming key administrative staff, 
organizing a forum, preparing a first report on the 
paramilitary phenomenon, collecting information from various 
sources, and evaluating reparations and reinsertion results. 
CNRR sources told us that the commission would probably name 
the Director of the Peace and Reconciliation Office in 
Medellin, Gustavo Villegas, as the CNRR's General 
Coordinator.  This position will oversee the commission's 
reparations, reconciliation, and institutional strengthening 
groups.  CNRR sources say that there is "general informal 
consensus" that Villegas would be the best candidate for the 
job given his excellent performance in Medellin and his 
impressive credentials, but they warned that his nomination 
is being kept close hold until later in the year because of 
Medellin's reluctance to let him go.  The commission plans to 
organize a national and international forum on reinsertion, 
reparations, and reconciliation.  The international forum is 
expected to take place in early November.  In its first 
report on the paramilitary phenomenon, it hopes to collect 
and systemize information from departments, municipalities, 
the Catholic Church, NGOs, international organizations, and 
others with knowledge about "collective reparations." 
 
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CNRR'S PROJECTED FUNDS 
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7.  (C) CNRR sources said that the GOC authorized 1.5 billion 
pesos (approximately USD 700,000.00) for the commission's 
budget next year, but the challenge will be finding the 
necessary funds for the remainder of this year.  The 
Netherlands has agreed to pay for the salaries of three of 
the five civil society members in the commission.  Meanwhile, 
the CNRR is trying to garner financial support from other 
international donors and the private sector. 
 
 
 
WOOD