Colombia's court on the conflict with FARC rebels in limbo as president-elect vows to dismantle it

BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — A decade after the Colombian government signed a historic peace accord with a now-defunct rebel group, the tribunal handling crimes related to the conflict faces an uncertain future after the country's president-elect vowed to dismantle it.

Known as the Special Jurisdiction for Peace, or SJP, the court — much like the peace deal with the rebels of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC — has long divided the country.

Colombia's President-elect Abelardo de la Espriella, who has been endorsed by U.S. President Donald Trump, has described the tribunal as a “failed” court. But analysts and legal experts say dismantling it will not be easy because of constitutional and international safeguards.

The tribunal is protected by Colombia’s Constitution and backed by the International Criminal Court, the leading world court, which closed its own, nearly two-decade preliminary examination of Colombia in 2021, after concluding the country was meeting its international justice obligations — mainly because of the progress made by the Colombian tribunal.

Alejandro Ramelli, president of the tribunal, told The Associated Press that closing was contingent on the SJP continuing its work — otherwise, Colombia would be in breach of its obligations to the world court.

The SPJ's mandate is to investigate war crimes and crimes against humanity until 2028, with an additional five-year period for trials, after which Colombia's Congress would decide whether to extend its term by another five years.

Colombia has yet to emerge from the cycle of violence as armed gangs continue to fight for control of the profits from drug trafficking and illegal mining, including dissident factions of the FARC that rejected the peace accord, the National Liberation Army, or ELN, and the Clan del Golfo cartel.

Supporters see the Colombian tribunal as a landmark that helped end Latin America’s longest-running guerrilla insurgency and hold those responsible for atrocities accountable. Critics argue the tribunal is biased against former members of the military.

The SJP, which began operating in 2018, has handled cases involving more than 14,000 suspects accused of crimes committed during the conflict. About 70% of them are former FARC guerrillas, 29% are former members of the security forces and the rest are civilians.

Iván Cancino, de la Espriella’s designated justice minister, told radio station Caracol Radio on Wednesday that he does not intend to eliminate the SJP, but will demand results and review its spending.

The outgoing President Gustavo Petro has criticized the SJP during his term. This week he said on X that the tribunal's budget “must be strengthened,” and that “establishing the judicial truth about the conflict is fundamental to national reconciliation.”

Ramelli told the AP that cutting the tribunal’s budget “would seriously affect the fundamental right of access to justice,” especially for victims of the armed conflict and that an “abrupt termination” of the court would result in a legal limbo.

He pointed to the court's rulings against FARC’s former leadership for more than 21,000 kidnappings and against a group of former military personnel for more than 100 extrajudicial killings.

In both cases, the FARC and the military acknowledged responsibility and received alternative sentences that did not include prison time but required them to carry out projects benefiting victims.

The court has also handed down a 20-year prison sentence to a former soldier who denied taking part in extrajudicial killings.

“What is the value of the truths uncovered through the judicial process?” Ramelli said. “We now know the true scale of FARC kidnappings, the recruitment of more than 18,677 children, the sexual violence committed by the FARC and the extrajudicial killings carried out by security forces.”

“The country simply did not know the full extent of these crimes,” he said.