Colombia

Law No. 975, 25 July 2005 Issuing Provisions for the Reincorporation of Members of Illegal Armed Groups Who Effectively Contribute to the Attainment of National Peace, and Other Provisions for Humanitarian Accords Are Issued

CHAPTER I
Principles and definitions

Article 4. Right to truth, justice, and reparations and due process. The process of national reconciliation made possible by this law should promote, in every case, the right of the victims to the truth, justice, and reparations, and respect the rights to due process and judicial guarantees of those persons who are prosecuted.

Article 5. Definition of victim. For the purposes of this law, the victim is understood to be a person who individually or collectively has suffered direct harm such as temporary or permanent injuries that cause some type of physical, psychological, or sensory disability (visual and/or hearing), emotional suffering, financial loss, or infringement of his or her fundamental rights. The harm must be the consequence of actions that were in violation of the criminal law, by illegal armed groups.
In addition, the victim shall be understood to refer to the spouse, or common-law spouse, and relatives in the first degree of consanguinity, or first civil, of the direct victim, when the victim was killed or is disappeared.
The status of victim is acquired independent of whether the perpetrator of the criminal conduct has been identified, apprehended, prosecuted, or convicted, and without consideration of any family relationship between the perpetrator and the victim.
In addition, victims shall also include the members of the armed forces and National Police who have suffered temporary or permanent injuries that cause some type of physical, psychological and/or sensory disability (visual or hearing), or infringement of his or her fundamental rights, as a consequence of the actions of a member or members of the illegal armed groups.
In addition, victims shall include the spouse, common-law spouse, and relatives within the first degree of consanguinity, of the members of the armed forces and National Police who have lost their lives in undertaking acts in service, that were service-related, or outside of service, as a result of the acts carried out by a member or members of the illegal groups.

Keywords

Victims' rights - national proceedings
Reparations to victims - national proceedings



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