Cablegate: U/S Burns' October 25 Meeting with Colombian

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E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/26/2016
TAGS: OVIP PREL PGOV PHUM PTER KJUS CO
SUBJECT: U/S BURNS' OCTOBER 25 MEETING WITH COLOMBIAN
MINISTER OF INTERIOR AND JUSTICE HOLGUIN

Classified By: Ambassador William B. Wood - Reasons 1.5 (b,d)

1. (U) October 25, 2006; 1100AM.

2. (U) Participants in Holguin Meeting

U.S.

Under Secretary Burns
Assistant Secretary for WHA Thomas P. Shannon
Ambassador William B. Wood
Deputy Assistant Attorney General Mary Lee Warren
NSC - Dan Tomlinson
Attorney Advisor Patricia Pugh, L
Political Counselor John Creamer
P Special Assistant Heide Bronke
Political Officer David M. Zimov (notetaker)

COLOMBIA

Interior and Justice Minister Carlos Holguin Sardi
Foreign Minister Maria Consuelo Araujo
Ambassador Carolina Barco
DCM Jaime Ruiz
Deputy Foreign Minister Camilo Reyes
U.S. and Canada Desk Chief Patricia Cortes

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Summary
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3. (C) Interior and Justice Minister Holguin told U/S Burns
the Justice and Peace law and demobilization process
were difficult to understand, even for Colombians. He
committed Colombia to effective implementation of the law
and to ensuring that the justice component of the law was
fully implemented. Colombia, he said, was a pioneer in
trying to bring to justice an armed group that had not been
defeated on the battlefield. U/S Burns recognized the
historic nature of the Justice and Peace process, and told
Holguin that the USG supported the process. The U/S
explained that timely, transparent effective J&P
implementation would be critical in maintaining Congressional
support for our Colombia policy. The U.S. delegation offered
continued help to strengthen Colombia's judicial and
prosecutorial units in the J&P process.

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Holguin: Justice and Peace Process
==================================

4. (C) Interior and Justice Minister Holguin thanked U/S
Burns for his delegation's visit and briefed them on three
important issues: the paramilitary demobilization process,
the Justice and Peace (J&P) law, and human
rights--specifically the protection of at-risk human rights
and other activists. Holguin gave a detailed powerpoint
presentation on demobilization and the J&P law, noting that
42,000 terrorists have demobilized (including 31,600
demobilized paramilitaries and 10,000 FARC and ELN
deserters.) The minister described the demographics of
demobilized individuals: overwhelmingly male, young, and
poorly educated. He then described the system and state
resources in place to reintegrate minors in the
demobilization process, which includes monthly subsides,
psyco-social treatment, and training and job placement.

5. (C) Holguin said that of 41,000 demobilized individuals,
5,234 had committed "grave crimes" and would
be subject to the specific measures of the J&P law. The
demobilization and reinsertion processes were so complex,
he added, that they had required unique legislation which had
then been reviewed and revised by the Colombian
Constitutional Court. In addition, President Alvaro Uribe
created a special commission led by High Commissioner
for Reintegration Frank Pearl to manage the reintegration of
demobilized AUC members. (See septel for details on
Burns-Pearl meeting.)

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J&P Decree and Implementation
=============================

6. (C) Holguin emphasized that the J&P implementing decree
issued by the Uribe Administration's decree met
international standards, and closely tracked the
Constitutional Court on "controversial" issues, such as the
need for complete confessions, and reparation to victims.
Foreign Minister Araujo added that the GoC had called
together the diplomatic corps to brief them on the
implementing decree. She said UN High Commissioner for
Human Rights Representative in Colombia Juan Pablo Corlazzoli

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had studied the decree and determined that it
was consistent with the Constitutional Court's ruling on the
J&P law. This, she said, added "credibility" to the
process.

7. (C) Holguin told Burns that the J&P process was
"difficult to understand, even for Colombians." But he
said the J&P process represented the first time in history
that a country was able to bring an armed group to justice
without defeating it. The historic norm, he said, was either
total amnesty or war crimes charges for the
vanquished. Colombia, he concluded, was conducting a grand
experiment that could serve as an example to others. The GoC
was committed to achieving both justice and peace.

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Protection to Human Rights Officials
====================================
8. (C) Holguin told the delegation that his ministry had
provided protection to more than 5,000 individuals under
threat, including 1,200 union members and more than 1,300
local government officials, journalists, and human rights
defenders. He added that, despite continuing problems, the
threat against these at-risk groups had been reduced, as had
the number of attacks against these individuals.

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U.S. Support Requires Justice
=============================
9. (C) Under Secretary Burns thanked Holguin for the meeting
and for his presentation. He said the USG
recognized both the historic nature of the J&P law and its
complexity. He said the USG supports the J&P law, but
stressed the need for effective, transparent implementation.
U/S Burns mentioned a Human Rights Watch complaint that
ex-paramilitary leaders were living in comfort and receiving
lenient treatment given their terrible crimes. Burns told
Holguin that recent war crimes tribunals to judge cases in
Rwanda, Bosnia, and Kosovo made it easy for critics to say
Colombia was not making a full effort towards justice. The
key to continued U.S. support, Burns said, would be
Colombia's effective implementation of the J&P process,
including ensuring that justice was done.

10. (C) Deputy Assistant Attorney General Mary Lee Warren
reiterated that implementation would be crucial. She
offered continued U.S. assistance to Colombian magistrates
and prosecutors working on J&P implementation. Warren said
the GoC would need to continuously ask itself what more could
be done to achieve justice. She concluded that many
individuals in the J&P process had been, or would eventually
be, charged with crimes in the United States.
DRUCKER

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