The Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs of the United States, Victoria Nuland, announced this Tuesday in Bogotá a donation of 8 million dollars for the National Police of Colombia that will serve to strengthen “respect for human rights” within the institution.
As part of his trip to Colombia, Nuland met with the Director General of the National Police, General Jorge Luis Vargas Valencia, together with whom he announced at a press conference the donation that is a sign of “the support of the White House for the process of modernization” of the Colombian security forces.
The Colombian government announced a “comprehensive transformation of the Police” last year, following protests in April and May in which more than 81 people died and the Police were responsible for at least 28 deaths, according to the UN Human Rights Office.
With this transformation, the Police created a human rights department, installed cameras and QR codes on the new uniforms, but remained linked to the Ministry of Defense, and still retains its strong military bias.
US contribution
Coinciding with the 200th anniversary of the establishment of relations between the United States and Colombia, the North American Undersecretary indicated that with this announcement the United States supports the “human rights protection work” which is promoted by the Colombian Police.
The donation, which will come through the Narcotics Affairs and Law Enforcement Section (INL), will seek to promote within the institution “the accountability of those who violate human rights, investigate abuses, as well as the prosecution of corruption” to achieve “strengthen Colombian and American democracy and protect all citizens.”
“A clean, honest and strong police force is what all our citizens want and deserve,” added Nuland, who also congratulated the institution “for all its work.”
For its part, Vargas assured that “the eight million dollars will be used to generate the necessary certifications and changes so that all police officers in Colombia have, as their first place of action, respect for human rights.”
This will facilitate “a closer Police, completely respectful of rights, a transparent Police, committed to the fight against corruption.” In addition, it will create an institution “more legitimate, with greater confidence and that serves the Constitution and democracy.”
“This ad will surely will achieve the objectives set by the Government”, pointed out Vargas, who also emphasized that it will serve for a “great transformation to protect the rights of Colombians, to guarantee the freedom of people who reside in Colombia and to continue fighting crime”.
United States too will support the Colombian Police by participating in the design and implementation of the Center for Police Standards, that will check and validate the skills of the uniformed.
Nuland is accompanied by an inter-institutional delegation and will meet during her stay in the country with senior Colombian government officials, including the vice president and chancellor, Marta Lucía Ramírez.
Other officials are also part of the delegation, such as the Undersecretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs, Brian A. Nichols, and the person in charge of Latin America and the Caribbean at the White House, Juan S. González.
Nuland and the delegation will participate in the High-Level Strategic Security Dialogue between the United States and Colombia to review security issues, among others. (I)
Source: Eluniverso
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