Colombia’s Supreme Court warned that paying reparations to victims of the country’s armed conflict could do serious damage to state budgets.
Supreme Court President Jaime Arrubla told newspaper El Espectador that “we must be careful with the collective reparation of 1,800 massacres they say took place in the country, because it could overwhelm the prospects of the national budget.”
According to Arrubla, the country’s judges must not let concerns about state finances influence decisions in individual cases of victims demanding reparation, but must keep in mind the financial reality.
The government of Juan Manuel Santos recently proposed a remake of the country’s Victims Law to include reparations to victims of state violence. Former President Alvaro Uribe refused to include victims of state violence, claiming it was too expensive.
