For Angela Cordon, the long search for her father and uncle has been defined by decades of agonizing silence, but also by the fragile answers unearthed by a unique judicial institution. According to Al Jazeera, Cordon was a teenager when her uncle, Reynaldo Cordon Herrera, and her father, Guillermo Cordon Herrera, disappeared decades apart during Colombia's internal armed conflict. Her father's frantic search to find his missing brother ended with a single phone call from rebel fighters before he vanished too, leaving a family to join the ranks of those affected by a six-decade-long war that has claimed over 450,664 lives.
Now, according to Al Jazeera, those hard-won efforts to find closure are facing an unprecedented threat. The administration of right-wing President Abelardo de la Espriella has announced dramatic reductions to the 2027 budget for government bodies, including the Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP). Al Jazeera reported that the total funding cuts for the transitional court are valued at approximately 181 billion Colombian pesos, roughly $57m. Additionally, according to Al Jazeera, a Senate committee advanced a bill proposing to eliminate the JEP entirely by March 2028 and transfer its functions to the general court system.
Victims and their families, as well as former combatants, have expressed deep concern that these financial constraints will prevent the court from fulfilling its mandate. Angela Cordon told Al Jazeera that fewer resources translate directly to fewer field missions and a reduced humanitarian staff, which could permanently stall efforts to locate human remains and leave families without answers.
Background
According to Al Jazeera, the Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP) was established in 2016 as a central component of a peace agreement between the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), which was the country's largest rebel group at the time. The transitional court was specifically created to handle the investigation and prosecution of serious crimes committed during the nation's decades-long internal armed conflict. For families like Angela Cordon's, the JEP provided a pathway to learn details about captivity and execution sites that the traditional criminal justice system was never able to deliver.
Why it matters
For readers observing international developments from afar, the situation highlights the complex and often fragile nature of post-conflict transitions and peace-building efforts. The debate in Colombia illustrates the difficult balancing acts governments face regarding state spending, institutional longevity, and the enduring demands of transitional justice for victims of long-standing internal conflicts.
What's next
According to Al Jazeera, the Senate-advanced bill proposing the complete elimination of the JEP by March 2028 remains part of the legislative outlook, alongside the implementation of the 2027 budget reductions enacted by the administration.