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Former Colombian President Alvaro Uribe has condemned the costs in opposition to him, calling them an act of political vendetta as he faces the potential of a history-making legal case.
By no means earlier than had a President of Colombia been tried on legal prices. However earlier this week, the workplace of Colombia's legal professional common, Luz Adriana Camargo Garzón, introduced that prosecutors would file a legal criticism, accusing Uribe of witness tampering and taking part in fraud.
On Wednesday, Uribe responded with a video assertion circulated on social media.
“The trial is being carried out for political persecution, for private slander, for political revenge, with none proof that I attempted to bribe witnesses or circumvent justice,” Uribe, 71, stated.
He confused that there was no proof linking him to any wrongdoing, nor to any of the paramilitary teams embroiled in Colombia's decades-long inner battle.
“They’re opening the jail doorways with out proof,” Uribe stated.
His political celebration, the right-wing Democratic Middle group, additionally took to social media to specific assist for the previous president.
The group stated it acquired information of the pending legal prices with “ache and unhappiness.”
“Just like the overwhelming majority of Colombians who consider in and assist Álvaro Uribe Vélez, the Democratic Middle maintains its agency perception within the innocence and honorability of the previous president, whose work and legacy in Colombia we cherish with immense love and nice dedication. Has been carried out Nation,” Democratic Middle wrote in a publish on Tuesday.
To this point, legal prices haven’t been filed, and no listening to has been scheduled.
However prices of tampering with witnesses may end up in a jail sentence of as much as 12 years. Uribe faces as much as eight years in jail on the procedural fraud cost.
Uribe has lengthy been underneath investigation for alleged crimes dedicated underneath his administration, which lasted two phrases from 2002 to 2010.
Tuesday's announcement stems largely from decade-old allegations that Uribe tried to silence witnesses who linked him to the creation and actions of the right-wing paramilitary group.
In 2014, a leftist senator named Iván Cepeda raised considerations within the legislature that Uribe had ties to the United Self-Protection Forces of Colombia (AUC), a paramilitary group accused of human rights abuses and drug trafficking. .
Colombia has been embroiled in a six-decade-long inner battle, wherein authorities forces, far-right paramilitaries, leftist rebels and legal organizations all compete for energy and territory.
Whereas in workplace, Uribe gained a repute for taking a powerful armed method in the direction of leftist insurgent teams and deploying troops in opposition to organizations such because the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and the Nationwide Liberation Military (ELN).
They have been additionally thought-about an in depth ally of america through the world “Conflict on Medicine”.
However Uribe's technique raised considerations about human rights violations. Beneath his administration, the navy was accused of killing civilians in distant areas and counting them as enemy combatants, a collection of incidents generally known as the “false positives” scandal.
After leaving workplace, Uribe continued to exert vital affect on Colombian politics, even main a marketing campaign in opposition to the 2016 peace settlement with the FARC.
This week, his supporters took to social media utilizing the hashtag #CreoEnUribe or “I consider in Uribe” to defend the favored former president.
After Senator Cepeda raised questions on Uribe's alleged ties to the AUC paramilitary power, prosecutors say the previous president tried to steer witnesses to retract their statements.
A type of witnesses is predicted to be Juan Guillermo Montesalve, a former paramilitary member who claims Uribe helped develop the AUC.
Montsalve had beforehand accused Uribe of utilizing his lawyer Diego Cadena to supply a bribe in alternate for withdrawing his testimony.
The approaching legal prices have been introduced shortly after Camargo Garzón was elected Legal professional Normal in March.
She was considered one of three candidates put ahead by President Gustavo Petro to the Supreme Court docket for a vote. Petro, in energy from 2022, is taken into account the primary leftist chief elected in Colombia.
The Supreme Court docket had earlier opened an investigation into Uribe. Twice, prosecutors tried to finish the investigation – and in each circumstances, judges rejected their requests.
Uribe was positioned underneath home arrest in 2020 whereas being investigated over witness tampering allegations.