# Colombia's war court orders former FARC leaders to reparations work over kidnappings
A Colombian transitional court has ordered seven former FARC leaders to spend eight years carrying out reparations and restorative work after finding them responsible for more than 21,000 kidnappings during the guerrilla group's long war with the state.
The ruling from the Special Jurisdiction for Peace, or JEP, was issued on 2025-09-16, according to evidence source 7154. The court said the kidnappings amounted to war crimes, torture and cruel treatment. Instead of prison, the seven were given the maximum non-custodial sentence allowed under the 2016 peace accord.
Among those named was the former FARC commander Rodrigo Londoño Echeverri, known as Timochenko. The court's decision covers a group of leaders from a movement that fought the Colombian state for decades through bombings, assassinations and kidnappings. The JEP said the practice of kidnapping had been systematic and left deep scars in families and communities.
The sentence is unusual but deliberate. Under the peace deal, former combatants who confessed their crimes and accepted responsibility could avoid prison if they helped repair the damage they caused. The work ordered by the court includes efforts to locate missing victims, participation in mine-clearance campaigns and broader initiatives aimed at reconciliation.
The ruling was the product of more than seven years of work by the transitional court. That slow pace reflects both the scale of the crimes and the legal complexity of turning a civil war's abuses into a judicial process. The evidence says the court found the kidnapping campaign covered soldiers, police officers, businesspeople and political leaders.
The decision also reopened old wounds. Ingrid Betancourt, the former presidential candidate held by FARC for more than six years, called the ruling outrageous and said the court was biased towards the former rebels. That reaction captures the enduring divide in Colombia over how much justice the peace process has delivered and how much it has asked victims to accept.
The JEP's finding lands at a time when Colombia is again struggling with violence. Dissident factions that rejected the peace agreement and other armed groups have stepped up attacks, and the security environment in parts of the country has deteriorated. The evidence notes that more than 130 soldiers and police were killed in such attacks between January and mid-August.
The ruling does not close the book on FARC's crimes, but it does mark one of the most consequential accountability decisions since the peace accord. It also shows the basic bargain of Colombia's transitional justice system: truth and reparation in exchange for reduced punishment.
Citations
- Source 7154: JEP finding, kidnapping total, eight-year reparations order and victim response.
