Justice of the peace struggles to maintain itself in Abelardo de la Espriella's Colombia

One night in April 2007, in the mountains of Colombia, a soldier approached a hammock where a man with whom he was forbidden to speak was resting. He offered him a cigarette. They talked about their hometown, the streets, the church. Until the soldier asked his father's name.

“Tomás Montes,” the man replied.

Luis Esteban Montes froze. It was also his father's name. The stranger was Leonardo, his brother.

Leonardo had been taken to the camp to die, murdered and presented as a guerrilla killed in combat. Another number in the accounting of a war that the Army needed to show it was winning. Luis Esteban was part of the troop in charge of the operation.

The story is in "Los Nuestros", by Catalina Oquendo, about false positives: civilians murdered and presented as guerrilla casualties.

Catalina has been investigating these crimes since 2006, when she received a list of 29 cases. Today, the Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP) estimates 7,837 victims between 1990 and 2016. Crimes have multiplied under the government of Álvaro Uribe.

"How did we allow ourselves to get to this? And in full democracy?", asked Catalina in our conversation. She investigated how soldiers began to kill to produce results and how society, including the press, believed in the "fiction of war victory".

Created by the 2016 peace agreement, the JEP prosecutes serious crimes committed by guerrillas and state agents. Those who confess and contribute to the truth can receive restorative sanctions instead of prison. The mechanism allowed hundreds of silent pacts to be broken.

Soldiers confessed to murders; JEP has already issued sentences. It remains to be clarified the responsibility of superiors and the fate of the missing. “This truth could be truncated if the JEP process does not continue”, warns Catalina.

It is at this moment that President Abelardo de la Espriella, who promised to end the JEP, supports its weakening. Protected by the Constitution, it cannot be extinguished by decree, but it can be financially stifled, with legislative support.

Last Tuesday (20), Congress approved a cut of around 23% in JEP resources for 2027. The government invokes fiscal responsibility.

The issue is not just accounting. It's politics. Cutting resources before investigations are completed can leave investigations incomplete, victims without answers and, as a consequence, those responsible with impunity.

JEP's delay deserves criticism. But weakening it also threatens the legal security of soldiers who confessed, trusting in the rules of transitional justice. The search for missing people is also being cut.

Catalina wrote "Los Nuestros" against denialism. JEP, achieving peace and the persistence of victims, needs to be able to complete its work.

That night in April 2007, Luis Esteban Montes discovered by chance who was about to die. For thousands of Colombian families, finding out what happened to their children, siblings and parents can no longer depend on chance.

This is also why JEP exists, which in the coming years, with the extreme right in power, will have to fight to remain relevant and maintain its resources.