Independent observers sought for Colombia trial

FAMILIES of three Irish men facing trial in Colombia have appealed to the international community to send independent observers amid fears they will not receive a fair hearing.

The three, Niall Connolly, Martin McCauley and James Monaghan, accused of giving military training to left-wing FARC guerrillas and travelling with false documents, face a preliminary hearing today.

A single judge and no jury will hear the case. In a statement yesterday, the men’s families said: “We believe that a serious miscarriage of justice is occurring. The allegations against them remain the same since their initial arrest. The prosecution is still relying on illegal interrogations, flawed forensic procedures and informers who have been discredited.”

In a meeting last week with Foreign Affairs Minister Brian Cowen, relatives of the men asked him to assist in identifying and obtaining suitable independent observers.

The department said yesterday a senior consular official based in the Irish Embassy in Mexico, Sheila Maguire, will attend the trial. Ms Maguire has also signed an affidavit saying she attended on a particular day in January 2001 a function in Cuba where Mr Connolly was present.

Cork Fine Gael TD Jim O’Keeffe has also done so.

Mr O’Keeffe said he swore that a man was introduced to him as Niall Connolly in Havana. “I supplied the affidavit and corroborated the evidence given by others, if it’s relevant, that on January 17, 2001, between say 6pm and 8pm, he was in Havana,” Mr O’Keeffe said.

Defence lawyers claim that on or close to that date one of the witnesses for the prosecution claims he saw Mr Connolly in Colombia.

Speaking publicly about the case for the first time, the lawyers for the three men yesterday charged the Colombian authorities and the United States with “blatant political interference” in the case.

In a press conference held just 24 hours before the trial, the lawyers said one of the key prosecution witnesses had been discredited and the case should not go ahead.

Relatives Madeleine Connolly, Cristin McCauley and Gerry Monaghan said in a statement: “We believe that the men have been held in custody in Colombia for purely political reasons.

“The Government and media interventions in their case in Colombia make a fair trial impossible.”

Colombian authorities maintain they have a strong case against the three men, a mix of eyewitness statements and forensic evidence, claiming traces of drugs and explosives were found on baggage belonging to them.