“False positive” cases should be processed through regular courts and not through the military justice system, said Christian Salazar, the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights in Colombia, La FM reported Monday.
Salazar said that for the purpose of transparency, the some 500 “false positive” cases should be tried in the regular justice system.
“We have been informed that there are at least 500 cases of deaths in combat that are presenting complaints in the military courts for extrajudicial execution. We therefore recommend that these cases are transferred immediately to the regular courts for their investigation,” he said.
“We also recommend creating an independent commission that revises the cases of deaths in combat,” the U.N. official added.
The “false positives” scandal emerged under former President Alvaro Uribe’s administration, while incumbent President Juan Manuel Santos was defense minister.
It was revealed that many people who had been recorded as having died in battle were actually the victims of extrajudicial executions by the military, who presented them as fallen guerrillas.