
<div> </div>
<div>In an <a href="http://www.eltiempo.com/opinion/columnistas/decir-gracias-no-es-suficiente-jineth-bedoya-columna-el-tiempo/15932778?hootPostID=da7553cd6d42339d1ac0252e77fd07bd" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">article for El Tiempo</a> after the main suspect in her case was released and rearrested in the space of one week:</div>
<div> </div>
<div>Jineth Bedoya Lima is an award-winning journalist and advocate for women's issues who was born in Colombia in 1974. She is well known for her reporting on Colombia's paramilitary groups, as well as for the abductions and threats she suffered in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jineth_Bedoya_Lima" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">2000 and 2003</a> in the course of her professional work. Since her abduction, torture and rape in 2000 her case has become synonymous with the impunity and <a href="https://www.ifex.org/colombia/2015/05/28/combat_impunity/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">corruption that is entrenched</a> in the Colombian judicial system. </div>
</div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div>
<p class="comillas">I have dried my tears and now I am inviting all my fellow journalists to join me in giving a voice to all the other women who deserve for their cases to be heard.</p>
<p>On the day of her <a href="https://www.ifex.org/colombia/2000/09/18/cpj_concerned_about_lack_of_progress/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">still-unsolved attack</a>, 25 May 2000, Bedoya was a reporter for El Espectador working on a story about violence at a maximum-security prison involving state officials and paramilitary groups. While at the prison, under what would turn out to be false pretenses, to interview a paramilitary leader, she was abducted, tortured and raped by three paramilitaries. As they tortured her, Bedoya's <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2011/11/one-victims-battle-to-end-sexual-violence-against-journalists/247870/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">attackers told her</a>, "We are sending a message to the press in Colombia." The abduction took place in broad daylight and, it is suspected, with the complicity of local law enforcement. <br /><br />During the years since her abduction, Bedoya has tirelessly fought to bring the <a href="http://nacionesunidas.org.co/blog/2013/05/16/no-es-hora-de-callar-las-mujeres-victimas-de-violencia-construimos-pais/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">issue of sexual violence against women</a> into the public consciousness. She has continued to report on Colombia's paramilitary conflict and history, only now armed bodyguards accompany her round-the-clock. <br /><br />In 2000 she received the <a href="http://cjfe.org/cjfe_gala/award_winners/Jineth_Bedoya_Lima" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">International Press Freedom Award from Canadian Journalists for Free Expression</a>, and in 2001 she was awarded the <a href="http://www.iwmf.org/jineth-bedoya-lima-2001-courage-in-journalism-award/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Courage in Journalism Award by the International Women's Media Foundation</a>. Bedoya was given the <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2012-03-08/michelle-obama-joins-hillary-clinton-to-honor-women-of-courage-" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Secretary of State's International Women of Courage Award</a> in 2012. <br /><br />The Federal Attorney General's decision in September 2014 to officially recognize the abuses against her as <a href="https://www.ifex.org/colombia/2014/10/02/jineth_crimen_lesa_humanidad/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">crimes against humanity</a> was welcomed, but, on 1 June 2015, the same office decided to <a href="https://www.ifex.org/colombia/2015/06/03/confession_out/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">drop the charges</a> against one of her alleged attackers, Alejandro Cárdenas Orozco. He was <a href="https://www.ifex.org/colombia/2015/06/10/ifex_letter_jineth_colombia/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">re-arrested</a> just a few days later. Local IFEX member in Colombia, the Foundation for Press Freedom (FLIP), whose lawyers represent Bedoya and filed a petition on her case with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights in 2011, <a href="https://twitter.com/FLIP_org/status/607183532671291392" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">tweeted</a> that they hoped this would be the first step on the road to finally ending the 15 years of impunity Bedoya has endured. <br /><br />But this was just an illusion. Here we are in 2017 and <a href="http://ipysvenezuela.org/2017/03/01/periodista-colombiana-jineth-bedoya-fue-llamada-al-estrado-12a-vez/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">justice still has not been served</a> in Bedoya's case. In March, she had to go on the stand for the twelfth time to provide the details of her ordeal. In the 17 years during which the judiciary has ineffectively investigated and prosecuted these crimes several of the people involved, both perpetrators and witnesses, have died or eluded the authorities. <br /><br />Despite the passage of so much time, the legal processes in the case have advanced at half speed, owing to <a href="https://www.ifex.org/colombia/2017/05/25/jineth-bedoya-dignity/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">a negligent judicial system</a> and a lack of political will on the part of the State when it comes to investigating and punishing those responsible for the crimes. An example of this is the fact that, to date, the only thing that has been achieved is reduced sentences, via plea bargains, for Alejandro Cárdenas Orozco and Mario Jaimes Mejía, who partially accepted the charges laid against them.</p>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>

<div>
<div>In the years after she was abducted and brutally assaulted while reporting on violence at a maximum-security prison, award-winning journalist Jineth Bedoya Lima has fought tirelessly to bring the issue of sexual violence against women into the public consciousness.</div>


In the years after she was abducted and brutally assaulted while reporting on violence at a maximum-security prison, award-winning journalist Jineth Bedoya Lima has fought tirelessly to bring the issue of sexual violence against women into the public consciousness.

Fighting back against sexual violence: Jineth Bedoya Lima


<p><br />Despite the many years that have passed, criminal proceedings have advanced slowly, coming up against a negligent judicial system and a state without the political will to investigate and sanction those responsible for these crimes. For example, to date only two people, Alejandro Cárdenas Orozco and Mario Jaimes Mejía, have been convicted for crimes against Bedoya, which were secured because they both plead guilty to some of the charges against them. <br /><br />This situation shows the lack of interest authorities have had in seeking effective justice for her case, leading to re-victimization and poor knowledge of Bedoya's rights as a victim of armed conflict. <br /><br />Within this bleak scenario, it is worth highlighting the courage with which Bedoya has faced these events. She has not given up and continues to fight, proven through her journalistic work for the newspaper El Tiempo, as well as the multiple campaigns she has led to raise awareness of women who have been sexually assaulted, with the goal of restoring their dignity. <br /><br />As a result of these efforts, in 2014, 25 May became the National Day of Dignity for Victims of Sexual Violence, which commemorates the fight and resistance that women exercise not only to avoid being victims of sexual violence but also to attain effective justice for existing cases of such abuse. <br /><br />The FLIP is asking the State to take necessary measures to expedite proceedings and punish those responsible for these crimes. It calls for these cases of assault against female journalists to be dealt with by taking into consideration the issue of gender, so that the fact that the victims are women is not overlooked as one of the motives behind these incidents. <br /><br />The Inter-American System of Human Rights has stated, via the Office of the Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression, that "in cases of violence against female journalists, the States have, in addition to the generic obligations, a reinforced obligation to act with due diligence based on existing provisions on women's rights, such as those established at the Belém do Pará Convention." They add, "[t]he States must adopt measures for protection for specific cases in which certain female journalists run an especially high risk of becoming victims of violence, taking into account the various forms of discrimination based on other related grounds, such as their race, ethnicity, age, or sexual orientation, among others." <br /><br />They conclude, saying that, "[i]t is also essential that the authorities responsible for providing protection and carrying out investigations be properly trained on gender issues to avoid discriminatory stereotyping when assessing the credibility of complaints, victim-shaming, justifying the acts based on attitude or behavior, questioning their honor based on their sentimental relationships, or using sexist vocabulary." <br /><br />According to FLIP records, between 2006 and 2016 at least 191 female journalists were victims of assault on the job. These incidents include, among others, threats, stigmatization, attacks, obstruction of their work, and sexual violence. Aggressors include guerrilla groups, paramilitary groups, state and private individuals. <br /><br />Lastly, the Rapporteur also indicated that acts of violence against journalists have a triple-fold effect: "they violate the right of the victims to express and share their ideas, opinions, and information, they generate an intimidating and silencing effect on their peers, and they violate the rights of people and societies to seek and receive information and ideas of any sort." Therefore, according to this body, States have an obligation to prevent, protect, and procure justice. The case of Jineth Bedoya is a clear example of the failure on part of the State to fulfill said obligation, making it necessary for this case to set a precedent for institutions to act and reclaim their responsibility in preventing repeated assaults on freedom of the press.</p>
<h4><br />BACKGROUND</h4>
<p>On 25 May 2000, journalist Jineth Bedoya Lima, who, at the time, was working for El Espectador newspaper, was the victim of rape, torture, and kidnapping after visiting La Modelo de Bogotá prison to interview head paramilitary officer Mario Jaimes, also known as El Panadero. <br /><br />Three years later, the reporter was kidnapped again, this time by the FARC in Caño Jabón, Meta. By that time, Bedoya was following up on the state of public order in the municipality, following a mass kidnapping perpetrated by the guerrilla group in 2002. <br /><br />As a result of these incidents, Bedoya started the <a href="http://www.eltiempo.com/noticias/no-es-hora-de-callar" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Now is not the time to remain silent</a>campaign in 2009, which seeks to ensure that women who are victims of sexual violence report their abusers and make their cases known with the hope of regaining their dignity. These campaigns, as well as other initiatives led by the reporter to promote forgiveness and reconciliation, have put her at greater risk, given the increasing number of threats she has received in the past 17 years. </p>

<p>Today, 25 May, marks 17 years since <a href="http://www.ifex.org/colombia/2016/08/28/jineth_bedoya_lima_profile/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Jineth Bedoya Lima</a> fell victim to a series of grave acts. </p>


Today, 25 May, marks 17 years since Jineth Bedoya Lima fell victim to a series of grave acts. 

The kidnapping, torture, and sexual violence against journalist Jineth Bedoya, 17 years in impunity


<p>IFEX - the global network defending and promoting free expression - and the <a href="http://flip.org.co/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Foundation for Press Freedom (FLIP)</a> are asking for justice in the trial against the alleged perpetrators of crimes against journalist Jineth Bedoya Lima. <br /><br />Jineth Bedoya is a Colombian journalist and human rights activist, known for reporting on Colombia's paramilitary groups and the FARC (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia). In 2000 she was abducted, tortured and sexually assaulted by paramilitaries. Then in 2003, she was abducted by the FARC. <a href="http://www.ifex.org/noimpunity/cases/jineth/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Bedoya's story</a> has become synonymous with the impunity and corruption that is entrenched in the Colombian judicial system; her struggle is featured as an emblematic case in IFEX's <a href="http://www.ifex.org/noimpunity/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">No Impunity campaign.</a> <br /><br />The prosecution has been negligent in presenting evidence: the testimonies that are fundamental to the case, as well as medical analyses, were presented 10 years after the crimes were committed. Since 2012, three former paramilitaries have been charged as part of the criminal proceedings. However as of 2016, only two of them have been sentenced for Jineth's abduction, and only one for the crime of sexual assault. None of the criminal masterminds behind the attacks have been prosecuted. <br /><br />In the nearly 17 years that the judiciary has spent ineffectively investigating and prosecuting these crimes, several people involved – both as perpetrators and as witnesses - have died or eluded the authorities. Several State officials linked to the crimes have not been prosecuted. This is indicative of that fact that the two sentences issued thus far in the case are not enough to expose the full truth and to achieve justice. <br /><br />The investigation into the sexual assault committed against Bedoya has lacked diligence and compliance with international standards that should be adhered to while investigating this type of crime. <br /><br /></p>
<p class="comillas">In the nearly 17 years that the judiciary has spent ineffectively investigating and prosecuting these crimes, several people involved have died or eluded the authorities.</p>
<p>To this date, Bedoya has given over 11 depositions and accounts of what happened to her. On multiple occasions, she has had to describe what happened in May 2000 and the acts of sexual violence committed against her. In August 2016, the prosecutor in the case against alleged perpetrators Alejandro Cárdenas Orozco and Jesús Emiro Pereira – as well as the defence – asked for a new testimony by the victim. The judge accepted this request, and on 1 March 2017, Bedoya will provide testimony yet again. <br /><br />This revictimisation and the fact that Bedoya will have to retell the story of her kidnapping, torture and sexual assault in front of her offenders ignores national and international standards that protect the rights of women who have been victims of sexual violence. Despite this – and in addition to the physical and emotional suffering that this situation has caused her – Bedoya has decided to testify once more to set a precedent on the mistakes that the Colombian State has committed in her case, as well as in many other trials related to sexual violence. <br /><br />Taking into account the seriousness of these events that perpetuate impunity in the case of journalist Jineth Bedoya Lima, and the revictimisation that this causes, IFEX calls on the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) to give a clear and public position on these matters, and calls on the Colombian Attorney General's Office to ensure that justice is served. We hope that this case advances positively towards the acknowledgement of the truth and the condemnation of all material and intellectual perpetrators involved, including all officials and former state officials. <br /><br />Taken  from IFEX.</p>
<p> </p>

<p>Journalist Jineth Bedoya has had to give over 11 accounts of her abduction, torture and sexual assault at the hands of Colombian paramilitaries. On 1 March, she must testify again. IFEX and FLIP are calling on the Colombian Attorney General’s Office, the IACHR and the judge overseeing the trial to ensure that this time, justice is served.</p>


Journalist Jineth Bedoya has had to give over 11 accounts of her abduction, torture and sexual assault at the hands of Colombian paramilitaries. On 1 March, she must testify again. IFEX and FLIP are calling on the Colombian Attorney General’s Office, the IACHR and the judge overseeing the trial to ensure that this time, justice is served.

Fighting back against sexual violence: Jineth Bedoya Lima

The kidnapping, torture, and sexual violence against journalist Jineth Bedoya, 17 years in impunity

Revictimised: Colombian journalist called to stand for 12th time