Key facts
- Proposed budget cuts by allies of Colombia's new president would affect the transitional justice court and efforts to find 137,000 disappeared people.
- The Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP) and the Search Unit for Disappeared People (UBPD) are facing proposed budget reductions.
- Joint committees have approved a nearly 17% cut to the JEP's 2027 funding.
- Senator Enrique Gomez proposed a 100 billion peso cut to the JEP, citing its slowness and cost.
- The UBPD faces potential cuts that would reduce its operational funding by nearly 22%, threatening DNA collection and exhumations.
- Magistrate Catalina Diaz stated that budget cuts would compromise victims' rights and hinder hearings in rural areas.
Proposed budget cuts by allies of Colombia's new right-wing president, Abelardo De La Espriella, could significantly hinder the work of the country's transitional justice court and efforts to locate and identify 137,000 disappeared individuals. Lawmakers are currently debating the distribution of the $195 billion national budget for the upcoming year, with a decision expected by October 20.
The Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP) court and the Search Unit for Disappeared People (UBPD), established under a 2016 peace deal, have warned that proposed cuts would impede investigations into human rights abuses and the search for missing persons.
Joint committees from the Senate and lower house have initially approved a nearly 17% reduction in the JEP's 2027 funding. Senator Enrique Gomez, a close ally of President De La Espriella, proposed a cut of 100 billion pesos ($30 million) to the JEP, arguing it is too slow and expensive. The committees backed this cut and an additional 70 billion peso trim, potentially leaving the JEP with a budget of around $200 million.
Magistrate Catalina Diaz of the JEP stated that such cuts would endanger the rights of victims and defendants, making it difficult to hold hearings in rural areas, provide support to victims, and safeguard the rights of alleged perpetrators. She noted that restorative justice, a core component of the JEP's work, is costly but effective, with about 90% of accused ex-combatants having recognized their crimes.
Similarly, potential funding cuts for the UBPD could reduce its operational budget by nearly 22%, threatening its ability to conduct DNA collection from families and carry out planned exhumations. UBPD Director Luz Janeth Forero warned that these reductions directly impact the investigation and deployment of teams in remote areas.
Advocates, like Paula Vargas of the Institute for Integrated Transitions, have urged lawmakers not to cripple the JEP, emphasizing the need for efficiency without dooming the system to failure. Proposals to end the JEP's mandate earlier or transfer cases to military courts are considered unlikely to pass due to a divided Congress.