the attorney general, Francisco Barbosa He has repeatedly raised his concern about the submission law that has been promoting the Ministry of Justice headed by Nestor Osuna. According to their critics, this would grant various benefits to members of armed structures and would not be as effective as they have mentioned. Even in the last interview he gave to the newspaper Timethe official of the judicial body assured that this law does not comply with the characteristics of the retributive law, but that it would be a kind of peace agreement.
“(The main criticism is that) they camouflage a peace process as submission to justice, which is unheard of because peace processes respond to transitional justice such as the Havana Agreement; and submission, to retributive justice such as Law 975 on paramilitaries”, noted the prosecutor.
And he added that it would grant impunity to criminals who have committed ordinary crimes through the figure of the principle of opportunity and would provide other benefits such as: “Benefit thugs who are deprived of liberty with sentences of less than 6 years; that is, they include 217 behaviors of the Penal Code. It’s a shameful pardon in disguise. They will say that it is not for ringleaders because they will have a sentence between 6 to 8 years, but with these regulations they intend to release people who, without being ringleaders, have committed the indicated crimes.
Let us remember that this project is focused on the disarmament and delivery of criminal groups such as the ‘Gulf Clan’ either ‘The Pachencas’ in exchange for penal benefits, which would be approved by a judge, but in this the law would also play an important role. General Prosecutor of the Nation.
According to Barbosa in the draft document that the Justice portfolio has shown, the real work of this body is not recognized and is even reduced.
“They want the Attorney General to be a notary of the submission process without any limit, they forgot that the prosecutors are autonomous and independent and that they are part of the Judicial Branch,” added the official.
Despite the criticism, Francisco Barbosa also recognized that there are important and relevant things in the project; For example, that the objective and purpose is something important for the Colombian context, but he insists that the project is being used more for the benefit of the members of those narco-paramilitary groups. Well, they would be given the opportunity to keep a high percentage of the properties and assets, which he even dares to describe as a kind of pardon.
“The philosophy of the project is not bad. Proposing a collective submission is possible, but with limitations. I must admit that some aspects of our concerns were taken, but they were distorted and new talanqueras were created that would create new violence. If it is approved as it is, the objective of the submissionotherwise it would be a pardon or a jubilee to benefit drug traffickers and vacate prisons through the principle of opportunity tied to the concert for aggravated crime,” he pointed out to the Colombian media.
It is not even the first time that he has manifested it; Previously, in a press conference he mentioned in this regard: “I call camouflaged pardons as if it were a peace process for people who have committed an aggravated conspiracy to commit a crime (…) with crimes that have a very serious connotation with other crimes, such as They are trafficking in minors, child trafficking, everything related to extortion, genocide and crimes against humanity”.
