Colombia’s House of Representatives on Tuesday approved a law allowing for financial support to be provided for hostage victims and their families.
The initiative, proposed by Senator Luis Elmer Arena of the Partido de la U, requires that the salary earned by the hostage prior to their being kidnapped will automatically continue to be delivered to the family throughout the time the hostage is in captivity.
These payments to the family will be provided by the entity for which the hostage worked prior to the kidnapping, reported news station Caracol Monday.
Representative and spokesman Jorge Giraldo stated that the law will also erase any civil debts accrued by the hostage during captivity, while the state agreed to negotiate terms of tax payment by the hostage and the affected family.
According to the initiative, which must be voted and agreed upon by the Senate, this financial support must also be offered to all persons who have been in captivity since before the law was passed.