A/HRC/43/3/Add.3 48. The announcement on 15 September by the General Command of the Colombian Armed Forces, 31 establishing anti-riot squads composed of professional soldiers, raised questions concerning Colombia’s respect for the guidance of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights32 relating to the responsibility of the police, rather than the military, to maintain public order. On 30 September, in Barranquilla, the military intervened during student protests at the University of the Atlantic, using potentially lethal force, when there was no imminent threat to life or of serious injury. Although no serious injuries occurred on this occasion, the use of such force in these circumstances sets a worrying precedent. 49. OHCHR documented 15 cases of alleged arbitrary deprivation of life in Antioquia, Arauca, Bogotá, Cauca, Guaviare, Meta, Nariño, Norte de Santander, Santander and Valle del Cauca. This was the highest number of such cases that OHCHR had recorded since 2016. In 13 cases, the deaths appeared to have been caused by unnecessary and/or disproportionate use of force. According to information documented by OHCHR, in 11 cases the deaths occurred in military operations related to public security involving antinarcotics and law enforcement activities. In six cases, the deaths were preceded by law enforcement activities that potentially could have allowed for the arrest of the suspects and thus avoided their killing. In one case, OHCHR observed that weak command and control appeared to result in the killing and attempted enforced disappearance of one person. The military was allegedly responsible in 10 cases and the police in 4, while there was alleged joint responsibility for 1 killing. In all 15 cases, the Office of the Attorney General had initiated investigations, but these had not appeared to follow the Minnesota Protocol on the Investigation of Potentially Unlawful Death. 33 50. On 22 April, in Convención, Norte de Santander, an army corporal killed a former FARC-EP member who had demobilized under the peace agreement. This killing was allegedly perpetrated on the order of a colonel. The corporal and other soldiers attempted to disappear the body by burying it in a clandestine grave. The Office of the Attorney General made significant advances in the investigation, including in regard to the role of the colonel. The corporal directly responsible for the killing was convicted and sentenced to 20 years of imprisonment, while a lieutenant who had collaborated with the investigation was removed from the military. 51. On 27 July, in La Lizama, Santander, a soldier allegedly killed a 17-year-old boy in front of a military base during a search operation related to small-scale drug trafficking. On 28 May, in San José del Guaviare, two former FARC-EP members who had not demobilized under the peace agreement and were allegedly members of other violent groups were found dead after having been arrested by the police. On 19 September, in Toledo, Norte de Santander, the military shot a former municipal councillor, who was a beneficiary of National Protection Unit protection measures, and killed her bodyguard. This occurred during an operation to recover a stolen vehicle. The military reportedly opened fire when the councillor was exiting the car, with her hands up, and after the bodyguard had identified himself. 52. Notwithstanding the zero-tolerance policy of the Ministry of Defence in regard to sexual violence, OHCHR documented three cases of sexual violence allegedly perpetrated by the military, in Arauca, Guaviare and Meta. OHCHR also documented cases of unlawful detentions, in Antioquia, Arauca and Guaviare. In some cases, these unlawful detentions allegedly involved torture and ill-treatment. 53. OHCHR received information documenting that, on 8 April in Valdivia, Antioquia, members of a criminal group and other violent groups not only participated in an official military operation, but did so carrying weapons. Furthermore, these individuals participated in actions falling within the purview of official authorities, such as conducting searches and seizures and detaining persons. In doing so, they illegally detained two farmers, whom they subsequently ill-treated. The detentions were later declared illegal by the judiciary. The 31 32 33 See https://www.cgfm.mil.co/es/blog/nuevos-soldados-profesionales-hacen-parte-de-pelotonesantidisturbios. Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, Annual Report 2015, chap. IV.A, para. 38. Available at www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Executions/Pages/RevisionoftheUNManualPrevention ExtraLegalArbitrary.aspx. 9