15 March 2013
IFJ Welcomes Indictment of Former Security Operatives over Journalist's Torture in Colombia
Seven former members of the former secret service in Colombia, the Administrative Department for Security (DAS), face charges of psychological torture and intimidation' inflicted on prominent journalist Claudia Julieta Duque, the office of the national human rights prosecutor announced on 10 March.
They include a former deputy director general of the service, three former heads of intelligence, a former head of counterintelligence, a former chief of operations and a former chief of the technological intelligence. Five are currently in detention while two are fugitives.
"We welcome the prosecutor's action which is long overdue," said IFJ President Jim Boumelha. "This is an opportunity to ensure accountability for those who broke the law and caused terrible hardship to our colleague. However, we must also unravel the entire chain and identify who ordered these unlawful activities."
The prosecutor has ordered the arrest of the men, accusing them of subjecting the journalist and her family to years of harassment, including illegal surveillance, communications interception and threats. In charging them, he stressed that the "systematic abuse was designed to morally and psychologically undermine a human rights defender and a journalist who was critical of the former government."
More:
http://www.ifj.org/en/articles/ifj-welcomes-indictment-of-security-operatives-over-journalist-s-torture-in-colombia