CCPR/C/116/D/2399/2014
Procedural issues:
Exhaustion of domestic remedies; abuse of the
right of submission of communications
Articles of the Covenant:
Articles 2 (3), 6 (1), 7, 9 (1), 12 (1), 17 and 24
Articles of the Optional Protocol
Articles 3, 5 (2) (b)
1.1
The authors of the communication are C.L.C.D., of Colombian and Spanish
nationality, born on 21 February 1947; V.F.C., of Colombian nationality, born on 28
August 1976; and A.F.C., of Colombian and French nationality, born on 25 June 1978.
They are submitting the communication on their own behalf and on behalf of A.F.D. (the
husband of C.L.C.D. and father of V.F.C. and A.F.C.), also of Colombian nationality, born
on 24 July 1946. The authors claim that the State party violated the rights of A.F.D. under
article 6 (1) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights; the authors’ rights
under articles 7, 9 (1), 12 (1), 17 and 2 (3) of the Covenant; and the rights of V.F.C. and
A.F.C. under article 24 of the Covenant.1 The authors are represented by counsel.
1.2
On 25 August 2015, the Committee, acting through its Special Rapporteur on new
communications and interim measures, decided to examine the admissibility of the
communication separately from the merits, in accordance with rule 97 of the Committee’s
rules of procedure.
The facts as submitted by the authors
2.1
A.F.D. was among the founders of the Movimiento 19 de Abril (M-19), in which he
held various leadership positions. The authors claim that hundreds of persons suspected of
being M-19 members or sympathizers were persecuted and arrested by the military; that, in
this context, on 27 October 1979, A.F.D. was arrested in Bogotá and tortured by members
of the army for several days; and that he was subsequently brought before a military court
and tried by a summary court martial.
2.2
Given that the authorities were arresting relatives of M-19 members, C.L.C.D. was
forced to change the identity of her daughters V.F.C. and A.F.C. — who were minors at the
time — in order to protect them and ensure their security and physical safety. Both
daughters were registered as having been born in Cali and as being the daughters of W.F.,
the brother of A.F.D. The authors claim that, in the light of their family member’s arrest
and trial, they were obliged to leave Colombia to protect their lives and ensure their
physical safety and thus fled to Panama.
2.3
In June 1982, A.F.D. was sentenced to 26 years’ imprisonment. However, in
December of that year, the High Court of Bogotá granted him amnesty under Act No. 35 of
19 November 1982, by which an amnesty was decreed and provisions issued aimed at reestablishing and preserving peace.
2.4
In 1985, the authors returned to the State party. They were subjected to constant
monitoring and telephone tapping, so they left Colombia again in December 1985, in fear
for their lives.
2.5
In 1986, A.F.D., together with other members of M-19, made contact with the
authorities in order to seek a new peace agreement. As a result of these contacts, several M19 leaders were captured and executed. On 13 March 1986, A.F.D. was at the apartment of
R.R.P., a well-known composer, in the centre of Bogotá. The authors claim that, according
to eyewitness accounts, members of the Special Operations Group of the national police
force burst into the house, shot A.F.D. and then shot the wife of R.R.P., killing both of
1
2
The Optional Protocol entered into force for the State party on 23 March 1976.
GE.16-11906