The Governing Council of the Inter-Parliamentary Union,

Referring to the case concerning the murders between 1986 and 1994 of Mr. Pedro Nel Jiménez Obando, Mr. Leonardo Posada Pedraza, Mr. Octavio Vargas Cuéllar, Mr. Pedro Luis Valencia Giraldo, Mr. Bernardo Jaramillo Ossa and Mr. Manuel Cepeda Vargas and the death threats against Mr. Motta, which forced him into exile in October 1997, as outlined in the report of the Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians (CL/184/12(b)-R.1), and to the resolution adopted at its 183rd session (October 2008),

Taking into account the information provided by the sources on 30 March 2009,

Recalling that the persons concerned were Colombian congressmen and members of the Unión Patriótica (Patriotic Union) party and that none of the murderers of five of the six congressmen or the perpetrators of the death threats against Mr. Motta, who still lives in exile, have been held to account,

Recalling that the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights decided in 2006 to examine the merits of the petition lodged in March 1997 pertaining to the persecution of the Unión Patriótica and the crimes committed against its members, including - directly and indirectly - the parliamentarians concerned, and had already decided in 2005 to do so with respect to the petition lodged in the case of Mr. Cepeda's assassination; considering that the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights is due to issue its views before the end of 2009 on the overall Unión Patriótica case,

Recalling that two non-commissioned officers were sentenced each to 43 years' imprisonment for Mr. Cepeda's assassination in 1994; however, paramilitary group leader Carlos Castaño was cleared of all responsibility, notwithstanding the overwhelming evidence against him which clearly showed his responsibility as the instigator of the crime; recalling also that Carlos Castaño was killed in 2004 by rival paramilitary groups,

Considering that on 25 July 2008, the Commission adopted its report on the case of Mr. Cepeda's assassination, in which it concluded that the Colombian State held responsibility, by commission and omission, for Senator Cepeda's murder and recommended that the Colombian State carry out an impartial and full investigation to punish the perpetrators and the instigators, keep the memory of Mr. Cepeda and his work alive, provide reparation to the victim's family and take measures to avoid the repetition of such crimes; that after giving the Colombian State two months in which to accept its conclusions and apply its recommendations, on 14 November 2008 the Commission forwarded the case to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, requesting it to uphold its views; that the Court is reportedly scheduled to consider the matter any time between the middle of 2009 and early 2010; recalling that the Committee has been requested to act as amicus curiae before the Court,

Considering that the rulings of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights are binding on the State of Colombia and that the latter, by Colombian legislation, conferred similar legal status on the recommendations of the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights with respect to petitions alleging violations of the human rights of Colombian citizens,

Recalling that, in her February 2008 report on the human rights situation in Colombia (A/HRC/7/39), the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights stated that “structural problems persist in the administration of justice” and that there was "a need for further progress in the fight against impunity"; considering that in her latest report on Colombia (A/HRC/10/032 of 2009) the High Commissioner reiterates that "impunity … continues to limit full enjoyment of human rights",

1. Takes note of the views issued by the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights, which reflect the concerns it has consistently voiced in this case, in particular the lack of any resolute effort by the State of Colombia, in the 15 years since Mr. Cepeda's murder, to bring the quest for truth and justice in his case to a successful conclusion;

2. Remains particularly concerned that the authorities have failed to act on the numerous leads which should have enabled them to bring to trial the instigator(s) of Mr. Cepeda's murder; remains perplexed and regrets that Carlos Castaño was never held to account despite his own unequivocal public admission of guilt and the many other items on file pointing to his responsibility;

3. Calls on the Colombian authorities, including the Colombian Congress, through its oversight role, promptly to take the necessary action to address the violations of the Inter-American Convention on Human Rights which the Inter-American Commission has identified in the case of Senator Cepeda; points in this respect to the Commission's concrete recommendations for action in the areas of truth, justice and reparation and the Colombian State's obligation to apply them;

4. Expresses its hope that the Inter-American Court of Human Rights will soon consider the case of Senator Cepeda's murder and thus provide its authoritative and binding views on these issues; would appreciate being kept informed of the Court's work schedule and any timeline that it may adopt for the proceedings in this case, including submission of the IPU's amicus curiae brief;

5. Awaits with interest the adoption of the report by the Inter-American Commission on the overall Unión Patriótica case; would appreciate being kept informed in this respect;

6. Requests the Secretary General to inform the competent authorities and the source of this resolution;

7. Requests the Committee to continue examining this case and report to it at its next session, to be held on the occasion of the 121st Assembly of the IPU (October 2009).

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