The project that is carried out by the justice portfolio in the country in favor of the humanization of sentences has generated division and controversy, starting from the elimination of incest or lack of food as a crime, the Attorney General’s Office referred to the inconveniences of some points dealt with in the project. Mainly the possibility of house arrest for crimes against humanity.
Javier Sarmiento, delegate attorney for human rights, assured that an article of the project socialized by the Ministry of Justice, which provides such a benefit to those deprived of liberty convicted of crimes against humanity and war crimes.
“We are concerned, for example, that there is an attempt to grant house arrest to people who have been convicted of crimes against humanity or war crimes and this could come to conflict with the Rome Statute and of course with the International Criminal Court”, mentioned Sarmiento, in an interview with Semana Magazine.
The official generated a strong objection on behalf of the public ministry, regarding the international commitments in terms of justice based on the benefits established in the project for the humanization of sentences, making it clear that a fine line would jeopardize the achievements made by the institutions.
“We note that there may be a tension between the commitments acquired by the Colombian state in terms of international cooperation on issues such as the fight against corruption, the rights of children and adolescents and what has to do with crimes international, “explained the attorney before the above-mentioned medium.
The attorney general’s office was invited to the public hearing of the prison humanization project, events that took place in the Boyacá hall of the Congress of the Republic. Hearing that was attended by congressmen who spoke for the initiative and the National Government, through the Minister of Justice, Néstor Osuna.
During his speech, the delegate of the Attorney General’s Office noted several points to consider, an example of which were the gaps in the project of the Ministry of Justice, which must be addressed in order to advance the discussion in Congress. It is a decalogue of 10 items with the objections of the public ministry to the controversial project.
“The bill does not contain a measure to strengthen the Higher Council of the Judiciary and the courts for the execution of sentences, which will be the ones that will consider these benefits, and the Bill for release proposes that incest in Colombia ceases to be a crime.” ‘, These are the reasons stated by the headline during the event.
Likewise, the delegate of the public ministry warned that the project was presented without the prior concept of the Ministry of Finance and that it also did not take into account the sentences of the Constitutional Court on the unconstitutional state of things, precisely the central debate of said initiative.
The Attorney General’s Office insisted on a more detailed study on the elimination of the conspiracy to commit a crime in scenes of violent protest, in addition to excluding the absence of food from the Criminal Code, based on the fact that those detained for this crime are no more than 100 throughout the prison system.
Reply of the Minister of Justice for the controversy related to the project for the humanization of sentences
On the other hand, Néstor Osuna, Ministry of Justice, spoke on Blu Radio about the decriminalization of sexual crimes. “Sex crimes such as rape, abuse or carnal access, even crimes with minors are crimes. Incest corresponds to freely consensual sex between two adults who are relatives.
And he added that although it is a practice that is morally reprehensible due to the fact of having sexual relations with a member of the family, the determination of two adults to have intimacy cannot be taken as a crime. Since “it is an exercise to make a limit between morality and law. Not everything that is criminal is immoral and not everything that is immoral is criminal.
The minister also referred to the criticism that has been generated around the bill that proposes a reform of criminal policy in the country and proposes various adjustments to the country’s prisons. The official referred to the article that would open the door for those convicted of crimes against humanity to have some benefits.
On this point specifically, the benefit would not be generated from the beginning of the sentence, but when 60% of the sentence has already been paid. “The current legislation, today, contains the benefit, when 60% of probation has been paid, what we propose is to harden it by house arrest,” said Osuna, in the video released.
He added that freedom is currently contemplated in these cases, so what is sought is that there is now house arrest for these criminals. “Colombia’s international commitments are perfectly covered because there is no commitment that prison is not resocializing, but only disabling”, Minister of Justice.
Understanding in this way that there are still questions associated with the project and that we must wait for the determinations made by the Government, making it clear that within the Executive there are positions that are evident among the citizens in favor of and against benefits for the persons deprived of liberty. with Infobae