GENEVA - Colombia must ensure that its security and drug-control policies do not reinforce systemic racism by law enforcement against people of African descent, including within the criminal justice system, the UN's International Independent Expert Mechanism to Advance Racial Justice and Equality in Law Enforcement said in a report presented to the Human Rights Council.
The warning came as the Colombian Government has placed a more forceful response to armed groups and drug trafficking at the centre of its agenda. After taking office on
7 August 2026, the Government also announced plans to pursue an intensified eradication strategy against illicit crops, including with the use of aerial herbicides.
The Expert Mechanism said Colombia's response to violence and organised crime must remain firmly grounded in international human rights law. It warned that predominantly punitive, militarised and security-based approaches have failed to restore peace and have had a disproportionate impact on Afro-Colombian communities, particularly in territories affected by armed violence, illicit economies and limited State presence.
The report cautions against resuming aerial spraying without adequately assessing its impact on health, food security and environment, especially on Afro-Colombian and other marginalised and racialised communities living in or near affected areas. However, the Expert Mechanism recognized that Colombia faces serious security challenges.
"Measures adopted in response must not reproduce longstanding patterns of racial exclusion and criminalisation," said Víctor Rodríguez, an expert member of the Mechanism. "Policies on security and drugs must be based on human rights and public health, incorporate an ethnic-racial approach, and guarantee the meaningful participation of affected communities."
Following its visit to Bogotá, Quibdó, Cartagena and Cali from 4 to 14 May, the Expert Mechanism concluded that systemic racism remains deeply rooted in Colombia's law enforcement and criminal justice institutions. Racial stereotypes associating people of African descent, especially young people, with criminality and dangerousness continue to influence police encounters, criminal or disciplinary sanctions, access to justice and effective remedy.
The experts also expressed concern about the proposal to create "urban security defence units." They warned that, without clear legal safeguards, independent oversight and effective accountability, these units could exacerbate racial profiling, stigmatisation and police violence against young people of African descent and other historically racialised communities.
"Any expansion of security operations or urban policing must be accompanied by strict safeguards against racial profiling and the unnecessary or disproportionate use of force," said Tracie Keesee, acting Chair the Expert Mechanism. "Effective policing requires evidence-based decisions, independent oversight and trust. It cannot be built on racial stereotypes, informal enforcement targets or the perception of entire communities as security threats."
The Expert Mechanism received extensive information about repeated and unjustified police stops and searches, excessive and sometimes lethal use of force, and the discriminatory application of police summons and fines known as comparendos, which may be related to informal police quotas.
The report warned that unpaid fines disproportionately affect young Afro-Colombians and people facing socioeconomic disadvantage, restricting access to employment and perpetuating cycles of exclusion and criminalisation. It recommended a moratorium on comparendos and related fines while their human rights impact is comprehensively reviewed, as well as the cancellation of outstanding fines.
The Expert Mechanism also documented extremely poor living conditions in temporary detention centres, including severe overcrowding, an absence of natural light and ventilation, inadequate hygiene and medical care, and a lack of food and basic supplies. Facilities intended for detention of no more than 36 hours are holding people for months or even years, many of whom are of African descent.
Against the backdrop of recently announced government plans to intensify arrests and law enforcement operations, the experts stressed that any increase in detention could aggravate already dire conditions. They urged the authorities to refrain from converting temporary detention facilities into long-term pretrial detention centres or prisons unless they fully comply with international human rights standards.
The Expert Mechanism welcomed Colombia's recognition of systemic racism and previous measures to promote dialogue in the management of demonstrations, launch initiatives on racial discrimination, and advance historical memory and reparatory justice. It urged that these gains must be preserved and strengthened during the governmental transition.
The Expert Mechanism called on the new Government to treat the report's recommendations as a roadmap to addressing racial inequalities and for preventing security policies from deepening them and offered its support to cooperate with Colombia in their implementation.
The report will be presented in a public interactive dialogue of the Human Rights Council on 29 September.
