IPU CONDEMNS THE KIDNAPPING OF COLOMBIAN PARLIAMENTARIANS AND CALLS FOR THEIR IMMEDIATE AND UNCONDITIONAL RELEASE
The Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), appalled at the wave of kidnappings that has hit Colombia, wholeheartedly condemns the abduction of Senator Eduardo Gechem and former Senator Ingrid Betancourt by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). The world organisation of parliaments also recalls that other MPs, including Oscar Lizcano, have been held for almost two years by the guerrillas. The IPU calls for their immediate and unconditional release.
The President of the IPU Council, Dr Najma Heptulla (India), has said that "kidnapping is not only a violation of these parliamentarians' right to freedom and security but also an attack against the Colombian Parliament itself, and against the Colombian people that it represents".
The President of the IPU Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians, the Chilean Deputy Juan Pablo Letelier, stated that "IPU demands the immediate and unconditional release of Eduardo Gechem and Ingrid Betancourt, and of the four other parliamentarians who are still held by the Colombian guerrilla forces: Orlando Beltran, Consuelo Gonzalez, Oscar Lizcano and Luis Eladio Perez".
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Established in 1889 and with its headquarters in Geneva, the IPU currently has 142 affiliated national parliaments and five associate regional assemblies. In 1976, the IPU set up the Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians. Chaired by the Chilean Deputy Juan Pablo Letelier, the Committee is composed of five MPs from different regions. It examines allegations and looks for a satisfactory settlement of cases by means of dialogue and cooperation with the authorities and all parties of the countries concerned. The Committee also undertakes hearings and on-site missions. The IPU also has a Liaison Office with the United Nations in New York.
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