Between 2002 and 2008, the Colombian army killed 6,402 civilians, deceitfully presenting them as left-wing guerrillas in an attempt to inflate its victory rate during the nation’s armed conflict. This dishonest act became infamously known as “false positives”. The victims, primarily young men from impoverished neighborhoods around Bogotá, were lured to rural areas with job promises. They were then murdered by soldiers, dressed in guerilla attire, or had weapons placed next to them, in a bid to demonstrate the army’s dominance over the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) guerilla group. Soldiers revealed that such actions were propelled by pressures from superiors to increase their “kill rate,” with promises of promotions or added holidays as rewards.
This manipulation came to light in a recent ceremony in Bogotá’s main square, where Colombia’s Defence Minister Iván Velásquez acknowledged the tragedy, saying, “We’re standing here before the victims… to say sorry.” Gustavo Petro, Colombia’s first-ever left-wing president and a former M-19 group rebel, echoed this sentiment, likening the situation to a “genocide”. Despite the apology, many relatives of the deceased expressed their frustration at the delay in acknowledging the truth and felt that the apology should have been extended by the previous leadership responsible for most “false positives”, specifically former president Álvaro Uribe and his defense minister, Juan Manuel Santos.
Florinda Hernández, whose son was among the victims in 2008, expressed, “It should have been Juan Manuel Santos who should have been present to show his face and ask us for forgiveness.” The Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP), established under the 2016 peace deal with FARC rebels, continues its investigation, with over 700 security force members testifying and accusations against former commanders like General Mario Montoya for being involved in such deceptions.
