The United Nations’ office in Colombia put its weight behind its human rights office and, at his request, debunked President Ivan Duque’s claim he was making progress.
In a press statement, the UN confirmed criticism by it’s human rights office that it “observed little progress” in the government’s obligatory implementation of investment programs in war-torn areas, called PDET.
Duque said on Saturday that the office “didn’t even bother to review the reports of those who… do such verification on the ground,” which is the UN’s mission that verifies the government’s compliance with a 2016 peace deal with demobilized FARC guerrillas.
Duque got what he asked for, and more
“I believe that not only that this went too far, but also that this deserves a clarification of the Verification Mission,” said the president, stressing his government is making major progress.
Duque got his clarification, but from the UN’s main office in Colombia, which clarified that “each unit of the UN entities, including the Verification Mission, works in a coordinated manner.”
This is contrary to the words of Duque, according to the UN’s human rights office, which said that the PDET showed “minimal coordination with other relevant programs.”
The president previously claimed the crushing human rights report was “an intrusion of sovereignty.”
Colombia fiercely rejects UN’s crushing human rights report
Foreign governments back UN
The Duque administration’s hardly diplomatic attacks and insults targeting the UN’s human rights office got it in trouble with the office that reports directly to the Security Council and the Secretary General.
Additionally, foreign governments like that of France, Norway, Canada and the Netherlands, backed the human rights report that bashed the Duque administration’s violation of human rights, failure to implement a 2016 peace deal with demobilized FARC guerrillas and ties between the military groups and “criminal groups.”
Colombia colluding with illegal armed groups, suppressing peaceful protest, failing to implement peace: UN
Human rights organizations reject Duque’s response
Duque’s far-right party on Sunday called for the expulsion of the human rights office, but found little response as the government stands increasingly isolated, not just internationally.
Multiple human rights defenders and the country’s powerful peace movement Defendamos La Paz undersigned the UN’s conclusions and rejected Duque’s response.
Former Interior Minister Juan Fernando Cristo
“We do not understand or accept that the Government, headed by President Duque, rejects the report of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and calls it a mess,” human rights organization CIVP said in a statement.
The organization, like Defendamos la Paz, additionally demanded the government implement the peace policies Duque falsely claimed to be implementing.