A new justice reform debated in Colombia’s Congress aims to correct the stipulation that the prosecutor general must personally prosecute 1,150 annual cases against high-level officials, because PG Viviane Morales says she only has time for three, weekly Semana reported Saturday.
Only Colombian Prosecutor General Viviane Morales can legally undertake research and accuse before the Supreme Court any Colombian minister, governor, ambassador, or military general who has committed a crime, according to the current justice system.
The reform, which is currently making its way through Congress, will allow Morales to delegate these cases.
There have been a total of 1,149 “graduated” criminal cases against high-level Colombian officials in the past year.
The prosecutor general has expressed concern that the justice system allows many criminal officials to elude punishment.
“As it stands, the system encourages impunity,” Morales said, adding that she can only handle three cases a year, and her office could never complete such a high level of cases.