Motion of censure against Diego Molano for operation in Putumayo

A group of congressmen from the Green Alliance, the Decency List, the Commons Party and the Liberal Party filed a proposal before the House of Representatives on April 12 citing Defense Minister Diego Molano to debate a motion of censure over the result of the military operation in Putumayo, in which civilians were reportedly killed they were then introduced as members of the FARC dissidents.

In the text, they assured that the journalistic reports that uncovered the scandal contain testimonies, photographs and documentary evidence that would show that the military operation, carried out in the Alto Remanso village, was carried out with the presence of civilians and in the midst of community activity.

Congressmen assured that among the dead are the president of the Community Action Board, his pregnant wife, the indigenous governor of the reservation and a minor.

For now, the date of the debate will be known only after Easter, as the Speaker of the House, Jennifer Arias, has only 10 days to schedule it.

This is the document:

One of the representatives who signed the request was María José Pizarro, who referred to the inconsistencies of the military operation in Putumayo on W Radio.

Pizarro assured the media that, “justice has to move forward, it must reveal what happened, what is clear, is that there was a bad procedure, in which civilians were killed and political control can be done to the minister and move the censure motion forward.”

He also questioned the validity of the investigation by the Attorney General's Office, led by Francisco Barbosa and who is a friend of President Iván Duque.

The congresswoman recalled that the Minister of Defense has already been summoned to different censure motions for other situations - such as repression during the national strike - which were ignored by Molano.

The Government's position on the military operation is that it was legitimate. The head of portfolio assured that the operation was planned five months ago before giving the green light to its development.

Molano explained that the intelligence of the Navy had information about the presence of illegal groups in the territory, which carried out activities related to drug trafficking. He also noted that the purpose of the operation was to give effect to an arrest warrant and in the process “all protocols of International Humanitarian Law were complied with”.

The minister's claims were supported by the commander of the Military Forces, General Luis Fernando Navarro, who claimed that the operation was trying to affect an illegal network that had been committing crimes in the region.

The chief of portfolio explained that the inhabitants of the region were being affected by the fighting between the 48th front and the Carolina Ramírez front of the FARC dissidents. For his part, General Oscar Alexander Tovar, Chief Legal Officer of the Army, indicated that 454 victims of anti-personnel mines had been recorded in the area of the operation over a period of two years.

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