Civilians killed by military in 'false positives' scheme

BOGOTA: A Colombian court sentenced an army officer and seven soldiers to 60 years each in prison Wednesday for the murder of four peasants, who the defendants had claimed were leftist guerrillas killed in combat.

According to the prosecution, the four victims were forcefully driven from their homes on March 14, 2006 and taken to a remote area in the Antioquia region where they were then shot in the back. The military had claimed that the peasants were guerrillas killed in a firefight.

The case is part of a scandal known as "false positives," when military forces kill civilians in extrajudicial executions. The officials then present the victims as guerrillas killed in combat in order to show good results in the fight against subversion and win privileges such as praise or days off.

The victims are often lured away to remote locations under false pretenses, sometimes even with the promise of jobs, and then are executed when they arrive.

The Colombian prosecutor is currently investigating allegations of 1,486 human rights and international humanitarian law violations by members of the armed forces.

So far the courts have handed down more than 126 convictions involving more than 344 uniformed officers and identified 2,701 victims.

Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2011