Colombian Mercenaries!
Colombians have been recruited via Facebook, Instagram, Telegram, TikTok and WhatsApp.
Bogotá, March 27 (EFE).-
The United Nations Working Group on Mercenaries warned on Friday that over 10,000 Colombians have been recruited as mercenaries to participate in various foreign wars, such as those in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ukraine, and Sudan.
“The Working Group was informed that there could be as many as over 10,000 Colombians recruited abroad, many into armed conflict situations. Due to a lack of precise data, it is often difficult to ascertain who among these individuals are voluntary enlisters, contractors, or mercenaries,” the statement by the UN working group said.
“What is clear is that this phenomenon of going abroad to fight or support military and security company operations is on the rise and present various challenges for the Colombian authorities,” it added.
According to the organization, Colombians, mostly former military or security force personnel, are among the most sought-after globally for combat or private security duties.
“The consequence of prolonged armed conflict resulted in Colombia having a highly militarised society with professional armed forces equipped with specialized training in combat, counterinsurgency, intelligence, and warfare. In the last 11 years particularly, there has been a surge in the global demand for Colombian personnel in military and security roles,” the experts explained.
Colombians have been recruited into armed conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Russian Federation, Somalia, Sudan, Ukraine and Yemen. They have also been trained for security services in the Middle East,Saudi Arabia and the UAE or even into organized crime operations in Latin America and the Caribbean.
The most notable case was the arrest of Colombian nationals in relation to the assassination of President Jovenel Moise in Haiti in 2021.
The UN expert group noted that factors such as high financial incentives, with offers ranging from 2,000 to 6,000 dollars a month; the lack of job opportunities in the country; difficulties with reintegration; and online recruitment have driven this phenomenon.
“Many recruitments of Colombians have been done via Facebook, Instagram, Telegram, TikTok and WhatsApp. Recruitment has also been by word of mouth, via friends or former military colleagues, both domestically and abroad,” the experts warned.
This phenomenon has also been coupled with an increase in cases of deceptive or predatory recruitment, in which Colombians are sent to conflict zones under false promises and end up subjected to conditions that may constitute labor exploitation or even human trafficking.
As the experts explained, many Colombians are offered unclear agreements or contracts in languages they do not understand, in which the actual duties are not specified, and which they sometimes only receive upon arrival in the destination country.
Once there, they may find their freedom of movement restricted, be forced to perform combat duties different from those promised, or even be detained with no possibility of returning.
Despite this situation, the Working Group commended President Gustavo Petro’s recent signing of Law 2569 on 17 March, ratifying the 1989 International Convention on the use of mercenaries, which aims to prohibit the recruitment, financing and training of mercenaries, and called for accelerating its review by the Constitutional Court and its effective implementation.
The Working Group will present its full report to the UN Human Rights Council in September 2026. EFE
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