Alias 'Otoniel', guarded by soldiers and police upon his arrival in Bogotá, on October 23, 2021. HANDOUT (AFP)
Dairo Antonio Úsuga David, alias
Otoniel
, the head of the Clan del Golfo captured in the middle of a military operation last October, was not only one of the most wanted drug traffickers in Colombia, but also a warlord.
Of several of the many wars that have been waged in the last half century, because before him he was a guerrilla and paramilitary.
His version of the protracted armed conflict that the country seeks to leave behind has ended up exposing, once again, the formidable obstacles that the Truth Commission has encountered, which, in the midst of all kinds of harassment, must hand over the middle of this year its final report.
The Commission collects the extensive story of Otoniel in jail since February 14, and this week will continue with that work.
The frictions that this diligence has caused, which has been done with the authorization of the Prosecutor's Office, came to the fore last week.
First, a session was suspended by the police, who claimed that it was due to a security problem.
"There was an escape plan," and that is why Otoniel's legal actions were "limited," Defense Minister Diego Molano said.
That incident had already aroused suspicion, but the murky atmosphere that has surrounded the testimony of the repudiated boss of the Clan del Golfo did not end there.
Later, over the weekend, the Commission reported the theft of equipment used during that interview.
Last Friday, February 18, unidentified persons broke into the home of the Commission investigator who has accompanied Commissioner Alejandro Valencia on appointments with Otoniel at night, the entity detailed on Saturday in a public complaint, and stole both the recorders digital that was used as a computer.
The robbery occurred two days after the session interrupted by the police.
"The security of those who participate in the process, the privacy of the sessions and the logistical support by those who have custody of the interviewee, are essential to continue with the interview," the entity said when demanding guarantees.
"It was not a robbery of common crime or that they were going to rob an apartment, they went directly for the information," said Commissioner Valencia.
However, he has also clarified that although they took the equipment in which the criminals believed the audio of another four-hour session on Friday was, that testimony is safe and was already in custody.
President Iván Duque has been clear about his intention to extradite as soon as possible the leader of the Clan del Golfo, a gang that has gone by various names, calls itself the Gaitanista Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AGC) and emerged after the demobilization of the paramilitary groups in the Government of Álvaro Uribe (2002-2010).
Authorities attribute to that organization about half of the drugs that have left Colombia in recent years.
Otoniel was recycled several times in his 35-year criminal career, as he had previously belonged to the EPL guerrilla and the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC), which is why he knows the war-torn Urabá region like few others.
“Otoniel could provide key information about the armed conflict, not only about the irregular groups to which he belonged, but also about the complicity and tolerance of politicians, businessmen and members of the public force.
Everything indicates that there are dark actors who do not want that truth to be known,” Juan Pappier, an expert for Colombia at Human Rights Watch, told EL PAÍS.
“The Colombian Government has the obligation to guarantee that the Truth Commission can carry out its work free from obstacles, intimidation and undue interference.
To this end, immediate action must be taken to investigate and bring to justice those responsible for these events, as well as to reinforce security measures in order to guarantee that this does not happen again”, he points out.
The robbery episode has caused an avalanche of endorsements.
"The Commission has a fundamental role in satisfying the rights of victims, in particular the right to truth, which is why its autonomy and independence are essential," recalled the Office in Colombia of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. , which urged the State to take immediate and urgent measures to guarantee and protect their work.
The German ambassador to Colombia, Peter Ptassek, or the head of the UN Verification Mission, Carlos Ruiz Massieu, among others, spoke in a similar vein.
The Commission, chaired by the Jesuit priest Francisco de Roux, has had to navigate the climate of ideological confrontation that has characterized the country since the signing of the peace agreement at the end of 2016. Like the Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP), has been the target of attacks by the Democratic Center, the government party founded by former President Uribe, but both have had the support of the international community.
The Commission's mission is to identify and understand the most serious acts of violence.
Hit by the pandemic, the deadline for his long-awaited final report, which marks the end of his mandate and seeks to dignify the victims, was extended until the middle of the year, when Duque's successor is already known.
The siege in the final stretch of its report should concern the victims, the world of Human Rights, international cooperation, and under normal circumstances, it should also be a matter of high state interest, values Gonzalo Sánchez, who directed for years the National Center for Historical Memory and is part of an advisory committee of the Commission.
"What truths do you want to hide?"
He asks.
"This happens basically because the government has been responsible for delegitimizing the agreements and their institutions, and this in the long run encourages ignorance or obstacles on the part of other institutions, or the action of criminals, as happened after the meeting of the inmate with Commission officials”, he concludes.
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