memorandum of justification concerning human ... - Just the Facts

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Santa Marta (Magdalena) – March 2009: Meeting on norms regarding the
recognition of Afro-Colombian rights; 30 participants from the departmental
administration in Magdalena
Bogota (Cundinamarca) – March 2009: Conference on the rights of Afro-
Colombians; 40 participants from the General Santander Military School
San Andres and Providencia – April 2009: Workshop on human dignity,
human rights, law, and public policies related to Afro-Colombians; 25
participants from departmental and municipal offices, as well as the
Consultative Commission on the Paizal Population
Guadalupe (Huila) – April 2009: Meeting on Afro-Colombian rights; 95
participants from the Maria Auxiliadora Educational Institute of Guadalupe
(Huila)
Manizales (Caldas) – May 2009: Meeting on Afro-Colombian Legislation;
80 participants from municipal offices in Manizales
Pereira (Risaralda) – May 2009: Meeting on Afro-Colombian Legislation;
60 participants from municipal offices in Pereira
Distinguishing Between Civilians and Armed Actors
Displacement continues to be an unintended consequence of fighting between the
Armed Forces and illegal armed groups, or between illegal armed groups themselves.
The Inspector General‘s Office, the Ombudsman‘s Office, and international organizations
such as the United Nations have called on the Armed Forces to include in their planning
measures to prevent displacement during their operations. The Ministry of Defense has
taken steps to address these concerns. As was reported in the last certification, the
Ministry of Defense introduced ROEs on March 5, 2007, through General Order of
Instruction 12. The ROEs provide guidelines for the use of force to protect both soldiers
and civilians from being the victim of tactics used by illegal armed groups, such as
engaging in combat using civilian clothing. On May 22, 2009, the Ministry of Defense
further refined its ROEs through Directive 17, which lays out two sets of ROEs for the
Armed Forces, one on combat operations, and one on security operations. The Directive
also ordered training on ROEs for all members of the Armed Forces.
As was discussed in Section 7046(b)(1)(B)(i), the Ministry of Defense created the
position of Operational Legal Advisors (AJO) to give commanders legal advice on the
planning, follow-up, and control of operations from a human rights and international
humanitarian law perspective, and 120 operational legal advisors continue to be assigned
to military units. These advisors are military lawyers who are trained in areas such as
international law of armed conflict, intelligence, operations, and logistics. Their primary
role is to advise commanders on the planning, execution, and evaluation of operations,
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