27 August 2024
On 5 August 2024, Presidential Resolution 279/24 was publicised, whereby members representing the Autodefensas Gaitanistas de Colombia/Clan del Golfo (hereinafter both groups will be referred to using the abbreviation AGC)[i], are recognised as negotiators in the “Social-Legal Dialogue Space” and arrest warrants are lifted. However, the legal framework under which this criminal group will demobilise is still a major point of contention and the AGC will need to prove to civil society that it wants to negotiate in “good faith”.
The AGC was formed by paramilitary commanders that refused to demobilise along with the rest of the Autodefensas Unidas de Colombia (AUC), a right-wing paramilitary group, in 2005.[ii] The AGC’s current activities include drug trafficking, illegal mining, extortion, human trafficking and the control of legal and illegal economies in the places where they exercise exclusive control, which includes control of or participation in local public budgets. Local populations suffer extreme violence at the hands of this organised crime group, including having to conform to their rules and regulations in many regions. In recent times they have sought to be recognised as a political actor rather than the high impact organised armed crime group that they are.
In military terms, the AGC has been growing in strength. Between 2018 and 2023, the group’s membership increased by 58% – growing from 3,803 members to 6,015 members. The most recent figures from August 2024 reflect that the AGC now has 9,000 members.
The AGC is identified by the Colombian Government as a high impact organised crime armed group. Whilst Peace Talks under the Total Peace Policy are carried out with political actors like the ELN[iii], the Total Peace Policy of the Colombian Government (Law 2272 of 2022) states that Social-Legal Dialogues can be carried out with other armed groups with a view to them being subjected to the “Ley de Sometimiento” (Submission Law), where the armed group lays down its arms in exchange for judicial benefits.
The Social-Legal Dialogue Space has been established to jointly agree the way in which the AGC will submit to justice, what benefits they can obtain in terms of reduced sentences and whether they can keep a percentage of the resources obtained in the development of their illicit activities.
Submission to justice implies that the AGC will stop committing crimes, hand over trafficking routes, goods and other effects related to their illegal activities, and dismantle of all their criminal structures. There must also be a commitment to make reparations to the victims and to provide the whole truth (Law 2272/22 and Presidential Resolution 279/24).
- In July 2024 the government announced that a Social-Legal Dialogue Space would be created to engage with the AGC.
- On 22 July 2024, the government recognised six members of the AGC as negotiators and requested that the authorities suspend the arrest warrants for Jobanis de Jesús Ávila Villadiego alias “Chiquito Malo,” wanted on drug trafficking charges in the United States; Orozman Orlando Osten Blanco; José Gonzalo Sánchez; Elkin Casarrubia Posada; José Miquel Demoya Hernández; Luis Armando Pérez Castañeda, so that they could negotiate in the Espacio de Conversación Sociojurídico (Socio-legal Dialogue Space).
There are real and unprecedented challenges, obstacles and risks in negotiating with organised criminal groups like the AGC. Not only do they have considerable income from operating illicit economies, as well as divisions within their organisation regarding whether they should enter talks with the Government, but there is also a clear point of contention between the AGC and the Government in relation to the legal framework under which they will demobilise.
The Ley de Sometimiento (Submission Law) is what NGOs in Colombia have made clear is the appropriate legal framework, the Presidential Decree also suggests that it is on this basis that the negotiations will take place. However, the AGC Lawyer, Richard Giraldo, in an interview with El Espectador 5 months ago, said that “no va a aceptar sometimiento” (they will not accept submission) and on 6 August 2024, in an interview with BluRadio, he repeated that they will not submit to the legal framework of the Submission Law. This is clearly a major obstacle as the Government sees them demobilising and submitting themselves to justice as per Resolution 279/24.
The AGC continues to seek recognition as a political actor and argues that they are not a paramilitary organised crime group. Their argument is that they only traffic drugs to fund the conflict, however, this is not the only illicit economy that they are engaged in – they are also involved in people trafficking, illegal mining and other forms of oppression of local populations.
Therefore, the Social-Legal Spaces will need to identify and agree clear objectives, rules and procedures. The legal framework must be agreed by the AGC, Government, Public Prosecutor, and accepted as legitimate by civil society, in order to move forward with confidence that there is a foundation for Talks with a potential for success. The Government is likely to be keenly aware that these agreements will set a precedent under the Total Peace Policy for other similar non-rebel groups to demobilise.
Whilst this is a step forward, there is not yet a strong foundation for the success of any Talks or for stopping the violence and suffering of local populations.
Recommendations
- That the Government requests support from bodies like the UN, as well as, from Colombian Civil Society Organisations to define the scope for negotiating the AGC submission to justice.
- That the State moves forward quickly in the implementation of its Human Security Plan (Seguridad Humana) to protect the rights of the civilian populations currently terrorised by high impact organised crime armed groups.
[i] They recently changed their name to Ejercito Gaitanistas de Colombia in an effort to appear to be a political actor.
[ii] After the demobilization of the United Self-Defence Forces of Colombia (AUC) there was a reconfiguration of the conflict with the emergence of approximately 80 paramilitary structures. There was then a stage of regrouping (immersed in multiple disputes and co-optation processes), to end in a dispute between Los Rastrojos and the Autodefensas Gaitanistas de Colombia (AGC), also known as Clan del Golfo, in which the latter emerged victorious. INDEPAZ
[iii] Groups classified as political actors are ones that have historically struggled for social transformation and social justice