Issue-Rule of Law
To prohibit paramilitarism?
Perhaps the constitutional prohibition of paramilitarism will not magically make disappear this atrocious phenomenon and its consequences in Colombia. But it would mean a big step in building a robust policy to prevent and punish it, along with the actions that have made it possible.
Read MoreThe challenges of the law
Lawyers in Colombia do not control themselves (self-regulation) nor allow themselves to be controlled. Everything begins with law faculties, which teach and do whatever they want, or almost do so. But the most serious comes later, when students obtain the title of lawyers and can choose between being a litigant, judge, professor of law, notary or public official.
Read MoreCorruption
To understand and overcome corrupt practices, one must see the rest of the iceberg: the vast majority of irregular behaviors, which may not be so spectacular or visible, but without which there would be no more serious crimes.
Read MoreThank you, Sergio Jaramillo
Whoever becomes the High Commissioner for Peace, will have to continue with a legacy that, above political and sectoral interests, prioritizes safeguarding the essence of what was agreed.
Read MoreBlack Mirror
For the future not to be as Charlie Brooker paints it in Black Mirror, the popular Netflix series on surveillance and new technologies, we need that intelligence agencies around the world are held accountable and that Google and the Gods of the Internet are subject to some jurisdiction. Even if this is not easy.
Read MoreMotorcycles or metros
There is no more dangerous activity in Medellín than being a pedestrian or motorcyclist, which results from the chaos in the roads, lack of investment in mass transportation, lack of controls and non-compliance with rules.
Read MoreSilent persecutions: espionage, surveillance and democracy
Surveillance has become a mechanism of social control by governments. It has ceased to be an exclusive weapon of authoritarian states and has entered the democratic sphere.
Read MoreThe anti-corrosive of peace
The lack of an effective and legitimate State, which earns the obedience of the people, has led Colombia to a vicious cycle of violence-peace-violence since the nineteenth century, with 26 amnesty processes and 63 pardons in total.
Read MoreThe ghost of fear
Social leaders working on the implementation of the Peace Agreement live in fear of being called guerrilla members, running away from the arbitrary arrests of the past.
Read MoreSatire, slander and democracy
Former President Uribe resorted to a forbidden speech (slander) to attack a speech protected in democracy (satire), which Daniel Samper Ospina uses in his columns.
Read MoreFriends of the “Tutela” Writ
A mistaken defense of the “tutela” write is leading to the reform that many critics of this vital tool to protect citizens rights have sought.
Read MoreDemocracy without Participation?
It is foolish, the result of an elitist and antiquated view, to think of social protests as a deficiency. On the contrary, it is the best sign that the excluded sector feels they have a voice to participate politically and express their disagreements.
Read MoreDiscomfort and Democracy
Marches, road blocks and protests may create discomfort in some sectors. But attempts to suppress them may end up asphyxiating democracy. Even for those who defend social mobilizations, these protests can become uncomfortable.
Read MoreSabotaging Institutions
Inspector General Ordóñez has managed to achieve his ultimate objective: he has discredited the Constitution of 1991 and created a suitable environment for a constitutional reform.
Read MorePetro’s Options and the Inter-American System of Human Rights
The mayor has three possible lifesavers. One is political and highly unlikely – that the President will not execute the order. Another is legal and unpredictable – the outcome of the numerous “tutela” writs presented before the courts. And the other one is international – appealing to the Inter-American System. Will this last one work for him?
Read MoreProtections in Criminal Procedure and Removal from Office
The debate over the implications of Article 23 of the American Convention in Petro’s case has come down to a single question. Does the Inspector General have the legal power to remove a democratically elected public official from office? Nonetheless, Article 23 also has other important implications.
Read MoreMore on Petro’s Removal from Office
There is an crucial legal issue in Petro’s removal from office that has hardly been discussed. It is the following issue: Even if you accept that the Inspector General has the power to remove a mayor, it would have to be done through a rigorous and demanding process, that was not carried out in Petro’s case.
Read MoreUnqualified to Disqualify?
This is about a key decision in defining the powers of the Inspector General’s Office regarding political rights. In the debate about the removal from office of Bogota’s mayor and his disqualification from holding elected office imposed by the Inspector General, the decision but the Inter-American Court in a similar case in Venezuela has been mentioned a lot.
Read MoreRevoking the Removal from Office
Unless a “tutela” writ or an interim measure by the Inter-American Commission overturn the effects of his decision, the Inspector General is likely to affirm Mayor Petro’s removal from office.
Read MorePersonalizad Internet
There’s nothing wrong with the internet knowing (or thinking it knows) our preferences and interests.
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