On August 14, Lawyers for Lawyers submitted a motion before the Argentine judiciary in support of the lawsuit filed by Colombian victims and non-governmental organizations in case 3937/2023, “Uribe Vélez Álvaro s/Investigation of a Crime.” This case investigates, under the principle of Universal Jurisdiction, crimes committed in Colombia between August 2002 and August 2008, including at least 6,112 extrajudicial executions and a number of enforced disappearances that were illegitimately presented as combat casualties.
In its intervention, Lawyers for Lawyers expressed serious concern regarding the public stigmatization and harassment of the lawyers representing the plaintiff organizations. The Comité de Solidaridad con los Presos Políticos (CSPP), Colectivo de Abogados José Alvear Restrepo (CAJAR) and Corporación Jurídica Libertad (CJL) have been falsely and unfoundedly linked to illegal armed groups, without any legal or factual basis. In addition, these organizations and their members have been subjected to intimidation tactics such as unauthorized surveillance and interceptions, as well as death threats against them and their families.
For many years, Lawyers for Lawyers has closely monitored the situation of lawyers in Colombia. Our organization has repeatedly provided support to Colombian lawyers facing obstacles in the exercise of their profession. We have observed with growing concern an increase in threats, stigmatization, and attacks against human rights lawyers. In this context, we have participated—along with other organizations and international experts—in the Caravan of Jurists for Colombia, which has conducted several monitoring missions across the country. The findings of these missions consistently reveal serious shortcomings in the protection of the legal profession, where lawyers are routinely subjected to verbal intimidation, threatening phone calls, online harassment, physical assaults, and other forms of violence. These reports also highlight the persistent impunity surrounding attacks on lawyers, which contributes to a climate of fear and undermines the practice of the legal profession.
In light of these circumstances, and within the framework of the Universal Jurisdiction proceedings, we urge the Argentine federal judiciary to move forward with the clarification of these crimes and to ensure that the ongoing investigation provides full protection to the lawyers representing the victims. This is essential to uphold the United Nations Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers and to guarantee the independence and safety of the legal profession.
