by Richard Prior
Staff Writer
Colombia’s decades-long struggle against guerrillas and narcoterrorists shows signs of making progress, but the worldwide efforts against drug lords will continue for years to come.
“Never until now has so many resources been established in the fight against narcotraffickers,” said Dr. Herman Galan Castellanos, chief justice of the Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court of Colombia. “We think this business of narcotrafficking is exasperating.
“It is a very, very big problem.”
Galan stopped in Jacksonville after attending meetings with officials in Washington, D.C., about problems with organized crime. He attended a reception and dinner held in his honor Thursday night at the University Club. He also gave a speech Friday at a luncheon held at The River Club.
Supreme Court judges in Colombia are chosen for eight-year terms from the nominees of the Higher Council of Justice. The Supreme Court has 23 magistrates who are divided among four divisions: criminal, constitutional, civil and work/labor.
“The story of the guerrillas and illegal arms movements in Colombia has been going on for 40 years,” Galan said Thursday night. “That the conflicts started under political idealism could be debated. But it has extended with the drug trafficking.”
Galan, who does not speak English, was assisted by David Alvarez, a translator at the U.S. Courthouse in Jacksonville.
Conflicts throughout his country primarily involve drug traffickers and paramilitary groups, Galan said.
“Paramilitarism has the backing of the establishment, the back of the victims of the guerrillas,” he said. “Businessmen, large ranchers; in general, people who have economic resources.
“That has been distorted and perverted through financing with drugs. And in the disputes about power and regionalism, they have gone toward terrorism to scare the citizenry and to dominate the state.”
Over the past eight years — and, in particular, the last two — there has grown “an enormous national sentiment to confront the problem,” he said. “The new president (Alvaro Uribe) was elected with great popular support to defeat the guerrillas and terrorism.
“They are trying very hard.”
Colombia is in the process of modifying the criminal process of its justice system so that it more closely resembles that in the United States.
“It’s a radical change,” Galan said. “The written, traditional system, which is slow and congestive, will turn into an oral process that tries to be a project that is faster and builds justice.
“It is an ambitious, very costly project.”
The changes will go into effect on January 1 in “one concentrated area of the country,” said Galan. “By 2008, this new criminal system will be operational in the whole country.”
Galan, other judges and officials hope the changes will have the impact they expect.
“I must say the problems continue, true,” he said. “But there are results. There is also a propensity for an increase of these conflicts.”
The judge charmed his audience at Friday’s luncheon by saying he hoped the subject matter “would not upset the digestion” of a fine meal.
Asked if the personal safety of judges was still a concern in his country, Galan conceded, “Unfortunately, judges in Colombia, especially those involved or dealing with our specialty crime, are high-risk functionaries.
“We believe we are performing in danger.”
The safety of Supreme Court justices is provided by armored vehicles and armed escorts “who are more or less trained,” he said. However, judges farther down the judicial ladder “are protected by their prayers and good luck.”
Colombia has managed to work through the problems created by a lack of an extradition treaty with the United States, said Galan.
Throughout the 1980s, narcotraffic in Colombia was directed by “very strong and advanced” organizations “able to infiltrate into politics and get involved with certain national directors,” he said. “At that time, the United States established a treaty of extradition.
“For the first time, these people in narcotrafficking feared the instrumentality of extradition.”
Once in the United States to stand trial, drug lords would lose their influence and power, he said.
An extensive battle ensued, sparked by opponents of the treaty. Those who backed it — including a minister of justice, an attorney general and 12 magistrates of the Supreme Court — were killed. The Plenary Committee of the Supreme Court in 1986 ruled the treaty unconstitutional.
A 1997 addition to Colombia’s constitution, enacted in 1991, now permits the extradition of Colombian nationals, which Galan expects will continue to cut into the drug lords’ effectiveness.
City Councilman Kevin Hyde attended the luncheon and welcomed the judge to Jacksonville.
“Most of us understand, at least from the governmental and the business perspective, the importance of international trade,” Hyde told Galan. “We’re trying very much to develop that in the city.
“Colombia already serves an important purpose for us in terms of our trade. Colombia right now is number 12 for imports through our ports and number 24 for exports.
“We hope that continues to grow.”
From those who think of his country as one large battleground, Galan pointed out the large number of “hardworking people who are not immersed in narcotraffic. We are not living what is being seen on European streets. There are not a lot of addicts on our streets.”
Dr. Herman Galan Castellanos, chief justice of the Criminal Chamber of the Colombian Supreme Court, was honored Thursday night with a reception and dinner at the University Club. After dinner, Galan spoke of the joint United States/Colombian fight against organized crime, drug trafficking, guerrillas and terrorism. On Friday, he was also the featured speaker at a luncheon held in the River Club. That appearance was organized by the Federal Bar Association, in conjunction with the Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce, Florida Coastal School of Law, Jacksonville Bar Association and JEDC International.