A congressman from Uribe’s Democratic Center said that if Dutchwoman Tanja Nijmeijer’s immigration papers are not in order, she should be expelled from the peace talks and denied entry to Colombia.
Santiago Valencia a Democratic Center, a congressman from the Antioquia state, requested the government to clarify the immigration status of Nijmeijer.
PROFILE: Tanja Nijmeijer
“The only way she could have her papers in order, is if she was granted Colombian nationality, and for a foreigner to be granted citizenship one must have done great service to the country and have served with distinction. That is not the case if a person is a member of the terrorist group FARC,” Valencia said during an interview with international media CNN.
On September 9 the congressman requested information the Dutchman’s legal and immigration status from the Prosecutor and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, according to local radio station La FM.
Valencia’s statement comes at the same time as US President Barack Obama pushs for a United Nations Security Council resolution, requiring governments to craft regulations and laws that will criminalize their citizens traveling or attempting to travel to another country to do terrorist attacks, according to Bloomberg news. If the resolution is passed, it will also apply to Nijmeijer.
Nijmeijer, who originally hails from the Netherlands, joined the FARC in late 2002. Soon after joining she became involved in a romantic relationship with a cousin of “Mono Jojoy,” the former military commander of the FARC who was killed by the Colombian Army in 2010.
MORE: Tanja Nijmeijer ‘joins FARC delegation’
According to a 2011 book by Jorge Enrique Botero titled “La Vida No Es Facil, Papi” (Life Is Not Easy, Dad), Nijmeijer was complicit in several violent crimes on behalf of the FARC.
Most notably, Nijmeijer has been accused of taking part in a 2003 bombing that led to the death of a child. Nijmeijer has denied involvement in this particular bombing.
In the event the FARC comes to a peace agreement with the government, its members are expected to disarm and be reintegrated to Colombian society. Nijmeijer, for not having Colombian citizenship, can not take part in this process.
The Dutchwoman joined the FARC in 2002 and is wanted by the United States for her alleged involvement in the holding hostage of three US military contractors who were captured by the rebels after their airplane crashed in the southern Colombian jungle.
Sources
- Colombia: ¿Doble estándar? (CNN)
- Polémica por participación de Tanja Nijmeijer, holandesa de las Farc, en diálogos de paz (La FM)
- Obama Aims for UN Measure on Curbing Foreign Fighters (Bloomberg)