25.
As for the first criterion, the State alleges that the state
agents, before making use of their firearms, unsuccessfully exhausted
all other means of control, that is, waiting for the victim to stop at the
checkpoint, giving the admonition “stop, National Army,” and once the
victim sought to elude the checkpoint, performing maneuvers to stop
him, in response to which Gustavo Villamizar is alleged to have
responded by shooting at the members of the military. As for the second
criterion, the State notes that the legal framework is Chapter VII of the
Constitution, the Military Criminal Code in force at the time of the facts,
the Ten Safety Procedure Rules for Handling Firearms (“Decálogo de
Seguridad con las Armas de Fuego”) and, in the specific case, the
“Júpiter” Operations Order. As for the third criterion, the State notes
that the members of the military were knowledgeable of the provisions
that permit the use of firearms, as shown by the way they acted in the
events in question. Finally, as for the fourth criterion, the State argues
that the military criminal justice system, acting within its jurisdiction
and making use of an adequate set of evidence, analyzed with legal
rigor, gave a “satisfactory and convincing explanation of the manner in
which the death [of Gustavo Villamizar] occurred.��15
26.
The State alleges that the fact that the Administrative
Court of Arauca had considered the Nation – Ministry of Defense –
National Army “administratively liable for the death of Gustavo Giraldo
Villamizar Durán” and accordingly ordered him to pay moral damages to
the family members of the alleged victim “does not contradict at all
what was resolved in the military criminal justice system.”16 The State
argues that according to the case-law of the Inter-American Court, the
suitable remedy for taking cognizance of the alleged violations of
Articles 4 and 5 of the Convention is a criminal action 17 and not a
contentious-administrative action, which would not be aimed at
establishing individual liability. It also argues that the judgment of the
Administrative Court was handed down when the military criminal
investigation and disciplinary investigations were in the investigative
15 Note DDH.GOI No. 23826/1221 of the Bureau of Human Rights and International
Humanitarian Law, Ministry of Foreign Relations of the Republic of Colombia, June 1,
2009.
16 Note DDH.GOI No. 23826/1221 of the Bureau of Human Rights and International
Humanitarian Law, Ministry of Foreign Relations of the Republic of Colombia, June 1,
2009.
17 The State makes reference to I/A Court H. R., Ituango Massacres v. Colombia Case.
Judgment of July 1, 2006. Series C No. 148, para. 296.
10