Colombia: Victims of illegal armed groups register to receive compensation

More than 53,000 application forms have been completed and 6,370 phone calls received in the past month for the compensation programme for victims of crimes committed by illegal armed groups in Colombia.

The 53,683 applications received so far have come from all 29 departments - Antioquia (17,260), Urabá (4,373) and Valle del Cauca (2,921) are the departments with the largest number of applications filed.

The proposed compensation consists of economic settlements provided by the Colombian Government to the victims of crimes including homicide, forced displacement, forced disappearance, kidnapping, personal injuries, torture, recruitment of minors, and violations of freedom and sexual integrity committed by the illegal armed groups.

Amounts awarded to victims are determined in accordance with Official Decree Number 1290 and can reach up to the equivalent of 40 months of salary at the national minimum wage.

Eduardo Pizarro, President of the National Commission for Reparation and Reconciliation explained, "This type of reparation, awarded through an economic settlement, is the most expeditious way to compensate victims of the conflict and has been the most successful internationally."

With funding from the United States International Agency for Development (USAID) and the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation for Development (AECID), IOM designed an information campaign, which included the printing and distribution of 40,000 posters and 400,000 flyers; and the production of television and radio spots being broadcast by the country's main stations.

IOM also managed the printing of the application forms and their distribution throughout the country, as well as the design of the software to carry out the programme and the hiring of staff to process the applications and to work at the Call Centre. IOM also strengthened the Call Center, run by the Attorney General's Office, by improving the technical infrastructure, purchasing telephones, and hiring the personnel necessary. This led to a 45 per cent increase in the number of calls received.

The applications are processed free of charge and are directly submitted by the victims without intermediaries.
http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/db900SID/LSGZ-7JBBZC?OpenDocument
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