Colombia truth commission in Geneva, Geneva Geneve Ginevra Genf, Switzerland - 24 Oct 2019

Carlos Martin Beristain, left,ÊCommissioner, Truth Commission (CEV), Alejandro Valencia Villa, right, Commissioner, Commission for the Clarification of the Truth, Coexistence, and Non-Recurrence - Truth Commission (CEV), speak about the Colombia looking for the truth about serious crimes by involving the diaspora, first ever joint transitional justice mission comes to Europe to audition exiled victims of serious human rights violations, during a press conference, at the Geneva Press Club in Geneva, Switzerland, 24 October 2019. The 50-year armed conflict in Colombia displaced more than 6.5 million Colombians, 300,000 to 400,000 of whom live abroad (UNHCR). This includes a diaspora in London, Stockholm, in Spain or Switzerland. The 2016 Peace Agreement that ended Colombia's protracted conflict included the creation of two transitional justice mechanisms: the Truth Commission (CEV) and the Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP), a judicial body with criminal investigation powers. For the first time, these two bodies are in Geneva to hear the testimonies of Colombians exiled throughout Europe and who were victims of the bloody repression suffered by Union Patriotica, a left-wing party that was wiped out after years of targeted killings which left between 5,000 and 10,000 dead.