Supreme Administrative Court of Colombia condemns the Army for "inhumane" treatment of soldiers

The Third Section of the Supreme Administrative Court of Colombia (Consejo de Estado) ordered the Colombian Army to pay indemnification for the damages caused to a soldier in a battalion who was the object of physical and psychological mistreatment on the part of his superiors and his colleagues.

The court emphasized the inhuman and degrading treatment against one of the members of the armed forces affected the activities which the armed forces provide for the nation.

In this particular case the Supreme Administrative Court considered that his superiors had damaged him for life, having subjected him to ridicule and causing him to leave the institution with psychological problems.

The young man in question had a psychological profile that was known to the military health authorities as a result of the death of a brother in combat.  His superiors, however, ignored that fact and gave him a command with the purpose of degrading his capacity before the other members of his command.

The Supreme Administrative Court ordered a colonel, a major and a captain of the Army to apologize publicly to the soldier his family and the media for the mistreatment he suffered.