Colombia Court Allows Armed Civilian Groups

Armed civilian groups that critics have called virtual vigilantes are legal under Colombia’s Constitution, this nation’s highest court ruled Friday, provoking an immediate outcry from human rights activists.

Opponents of the armed groups, including Colombia’s prosecutor general, had hoped that the court would order the disbanding of more than 414 Rural Security Cooperatives, known here as the Convivir.

Instead, in the 5-4 ruling, the court reminded the civilians that they have no right to high-powered weapons. Government records show that the army has sold the Convivir automatic rifles, which only the armed forces may have under Colombian law. The army also furnishes the Convivir with sophisticated communications equipment.

The government authorized the Convivir more than two years ago to help the army track leftist guerrillas. The armed forces have steadily lost ground in recent years to leftist rebels who finance their fight with kidnapping ransoms, extortion and “taxes” on cocaine and heroin production.

With insurgents controlling about half of Colombia, the government admits that it cannot provide security across the nation, especially in rural areas. The Convivir has become an alternative force in many remote regions.

The case pitted citizens’ rights to self-defense against international agreements that prohibit involving civilians in military conflicts such as Colombia’s decades-long civil war. In addition, Colombian and international human rights groups accuse the Convivir of abuses against suspected rebel sympathizers.

The court majority reasoned that citizens have the right to help the armed forces because such actions support peace, one Constitutional Court justice said.

The decision was applauded by the National Ranchers Assn., an organization whose members are frequent targets of kidnapping and extortion by guerrillas.

“This decision . . . allows communities--especially rural ones--to help serve as eyes and ears in intelligence work and to prevent crimes against the armed forces and the community in general,” said Jorge Visbal, the association’s president.

But human rights activist Eduardo Carreno condemned the decision.

“It will extend the armed conflict in Colombia,” he predicted.