2024-08-27 21:09:35
Representative to the House for Valle del Cauca, Julián López, said that sentences of up to 50 years are being considered.
In an effort to combat the recruitment of minors by illegal armed groups, the representative to the House of Representatives of the U Party for Valle del Cauca, Julián López, presented a bill that seeks to impose harsher penalties for those who commit this crime. The proposal, which has the support of more than 125 congressmen, proposes sentences ranging from 480 to 600 months in prison, that is, up to 50 years in jail.
During an interview, Congressman López explained that the initiative aims to protect the fundamental rights of boys and girls in Colombia, who have been recurrent victims of forced recruitment. “Between 1996 and 2016, more than 18,000 minors have been recruited, and that is only what we have on record; under-registration may be two or three times higher,” he warned.
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Imprescriptible crime
The bill also proposes that the crime of recruiting minors should not be subject to a statute of limitations, meaning that cases can be investigated and tried no matter how much time has passed since they were committed. This measure seeks to ensure that those responsible for these crimes do not evade justice over time.
López, who is the rapporteur of the project together with the mayor of Cali, Alejandro Éder, said that the proposal includes modifications to three key articles of the Penal Code: articles 83, 162 and 188. These articles currently regulate the penalties related to the recruitment of minors, illicit recruitment and the murder of protected persons. The proposed modifications seek to increase the penalties and establish a more rigorous legal framework that discourages criminals and armed groups from continuing with this practice.
“This project discourages these criminals and terrorists from committing this crime (…) this also has a very deep social cost, we are losing our children in that jungle,” López stressed.
Future snatched away
The representative stressed that the seriousness of this crime lies not only in the physical and psychological damage suffered by the recruited minors, but also in the social implications that it entails. “We are talking about a generation that is being robbed of its future, forced to commit illicit acts in the name of a cause that does not belong to them. This has a devastating impact on Colombian society,” he concluded.
The legislative proposal has generated a broad debate in Congress, with strong support from various parties, and is expected to be discussed in the next plenary sessions. If approved, it will mark a significant change in the fight against the recruitment of minors and will reinforce the commitment of the Colombian State to the protection of its children.
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