US report criticizes corruption and abuse in Colombia

[Judi Lynn]

US report criticizes corruption and abuse in Colombia
Friday, 12 March 2010 07:19 Kirsten Begg

The U.S. State Department's 2009 Human Rights Report found that despite progress, "significant" human rights abuses and "impunity" for corrupt officials still persist in Colombia.

The report notes that Andres Felipe Arias, former agricultural minister and current presidential hopeful, was "implicated" in the agricultural subsidies scandal.

The State Department acknowledges the Colombian government's efforts to combat guerrillas, illegal armed groups and paramilitaries, but states that "officials sometimes engaged in corrupt practices with impunity."

The report criticizes "illegal and extrajudicial" murders, forced disappearances, arbitrary arrests, and collaboration between the Colombian armed forces and illegal armed groups.

The report expresses concern over the state of Colombia's judicial system, which is "subject to intimation," and in which criminals often enjoy impunity. It notes the DAS wiretapping scandal, in which the government security agency undertook illegal surveillance of judges as well as journalists, trade unionists and politicians.

More:
http://colombiareports.com/colombia-news/news/8659-us-state-department-report-denounces-colombian-corruption-impunity.html