Colombian Government Rejects ELN's 'Sentences' on Kidnapped Officials
The Colombian government condemns the 'sentences' imposed by the ELN on kidnapped CTI officials, reaffirming the guerrilla's illegitimacy.
TL;DR
- The ELN announced 'revolutionary prison sentences' for four kidnapped Colombian officials.
- Two CTI officials were sentenced to 60 and 55 months for belonging to a state organism accused of crimes against humanity.
- Two Dijín police officers were sentenced to 36 and 32 months for espionage and perfidy.
- The ELN considers these 'sentences' as punishments adopted in 'revolutionary trials' to justify continued captivity.
- The group stated that capital punishment was not imposed and that time spent in captivity would be deducted from sentences.
- Colombia's Minister of Defense, Pedro Sánchez Suárez, called the ELN's announcement 'cowardly' and labeled the group a 'drug trafficking cartel.'
- The Defensor del Pueblo, Iris Marín Ortiz, stated that such actions do not alter the nature of kidnapping and that liberty must cease unconditionally under international humanitarian law.
- Arauca, where the officials were kidnapped, is heavily impacted by armed conflict and disputes over drug trafficking routes.