Colombian ex-President Álvaro Uribe at a press conference of his party, Democratic Center. Photo: EFE.
Following the historic conviction against former president Álvaro Uribe Vélez, sentencing him to 12 years of house arrest for the crimes of bribery in a judicial proceeding and procedural fraud, issued by Judge Sandra Heredia, Senator Iván Cepeda—recognized as the main victim in the judicial process against the former president—repudiated the fierce persecution by Uribe’s associates against the Colombian judiciary.
Cepeda decried that Uribe has unleashed this persecution whenever a judge, prosecutor, magistrate, lawyer, or victim has dared to demand justice for his numerous crimes.
The Colombian senator accused the former president of calling the judges “kidnappers” and of “intervening in the Supreme Court of Justice with microphones.”
Cepeda’s concern extends to the close circle of the former president, especially his sons, Tomás and Jerónimo Uribe.
The senator highlighted that the two issued hateful statements and are designed to incite violence amid a trial that extended over years and ultimately ruled in favor of justice.
Cepeda also criticized presidential pre-candidates from Uribe’s party, the Democratic Center, who have “used the term plague to describe us and the judges of the Republic.”
The senator emphasized that this type of discourse is already having consequences, as a former paramilitary, a witness for Uribe’s defense, declared that he knows the location of the judge’s family residence.
Colombia: Dimensions of the Judicial Ruling Against Former President Uribe
Regarding Uribe’s lengthy appeal during the hearing, Cepeda described it not as a legal appeal, but as a political diatribe.
In his opinion, the former president “thought he was on the campaign trail or on a podium giving a speech. He did not present any serious argument related to the ruling and the judicial decision.”
The senator from the progressive Historical Pact coalition pointed out that Uribe’s appeal had “political overtones, outside of purely legal matters, with a string of accusations against the government and clichés that have no evidentiary support.”
Senator Iván Cepeda also alerted the public about international pressure on the Colombian judiciary, particularly from the United States.
EL INFAME CABILDEO EN EEUU
El infame cabildeo que están haciendo en EEUU los enviados del condenado en primera instancia, Álvaro Uribe Vélez, busca no solo debilitar el Poder Judicial, sino generar sanciones para todos los colombianos de no lograr recuperar su impunidad. Es, sin…
— Iván Cepeda Castro (@IvanCepedaCast) August 2, 2025
He emphasized that statements from Republican politicians like Marco Rubio—who described the conviction as the weaponization of the judiciary by “radical judges”—can be interpreted as evidence of US pressure on the judicial system of Colombia.
Additionally, the US Undersecretary of State Christopher Landau, alongside US Senators María Elvira Salazar, Carlos Giménez, Mario Díaz-Balart, and Bernie Moreno stated that “Colombia needs to stop using its judicial system as a weapon against former President Álvaro Uribe. It is a very dangerous path for a country that should be one of the main allies of the United States in Latin America.” These words reveal the long-standing nature of Uribe’s ties with the US forces of destabilization and intervention against Colombia, which the trial has indirectly condemned.
COMUNICADO DE PRENSA
Organizaciones de derechos humanos y víctimas del caso contra Álvaro Uribe Vélez alertan a la ONU y la CIDH sobre presiones externas al poder judicial colombiano
Bogotá D.C., 31 de julio de 2025.- Los abajo firmantes nos permitimos informar a la opinión…
— Iván Cepeda Castro (@IvanCepedaCast) July 31, 2025
In this regard, Cepeda called the lobbying in the United States “infamous.” Continuing, “they are trying to provoke sanctions against Colombia if the objective of maintaining impunity in the Uribe case is not achieved,” he said.
The victims of the Uribe case, including Cepeda, sent an official communication to the UN and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), denouncing these external pressures and attempts to interfere with the judicial function.
(Telesur)
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/SC/DZ
