Colombia peace tribunal faces $31m budget cut plan

Colombia's Special Jurisdiction for Peace faces a proposed budget cut of about $31 million, a plan supported by President Abelardo de la Espriella, who denied that he was pursuing revenge against the tribunal.

A pro-government senator introduced the bill on Thursday. It would reduce the tribunal's state budget from $230 million to $199 million and direct the savings to the traditional justice system.

De la Espriella said on X that he did not have a “policy of revenge” against the tribunal. He said he had a duty to bring order to spending, demand results and allocate limited state resources to a justice system serving everyone.

The tribunal, known by its Spanish acronym JEP, was created under Colombia's 2016 peace deal with the now-defunct FARC rebel army. It handles the worst crimes from the country's decades-long armed conflict and can impose alternative sentences to prison as part of peace efforts.

Tribunal president Alejandro Ramelli on Friday likened the proposed cut to “economic asphyxiation.”

The tribunal issued its first verdicts last year. In one ruling, senior FARC leaders received eight years of community service and movement restrictions after more than 21,000 kidnappings. Twelve retired military officers responsible for disappearances and extrajudicial executions of civilians received similar sentences.