Colombia three to speak in their defence

Protected by at least 30 armed prison guards, three IRA-linked Irishmen accused of training Colombian rebels in terror tactics were rushed into a court today to give evidence in their defence.

The men arrived in a pick-up truck with security bars in the back and were driven directly into the Bogota court’s basement, bypassing a group of protesters standing in the street.

The protesters carried a sign saying: “We demand freedom for the three Irish prisoners in Colombia.”

James Monaghan, Niall Connolly and Martin McCauley were expected give evidence while their lawyers made final arguments in the terrorism trial, now in its ninth month.

It was to be their first public appearance in court. The men have previously refused to attend the hearings, saying that it is impossible for them to get a fair trial in Colombia because of the highly political nature of the charges.

Prosecutors have said the evidence presented leaves no doubt that the men trained rebels in terrorist tactics in the steamy jungles of southern Colombia.

In final arguments, defence lawyers were expected to try to convince Judge Jairo Acosta that the men were in a rebel stronghold only to observe a now-defunct peace process between the insurgents and the government.

Once hearings end this week, Acosta has 15 working days to decide the men’s fate.

Monaghan, Connolly and McCauley were arrested in August 2001 at Bogota’s airport after visiting a stronghold of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or Farc. The men, known now in Europe as The Colombian Three, were travelling with false passports when they were arrested.

Prosecution witnesses say the men tested weapons and trained Farc rebels in terrorist tactics while at the stronghold.

Prosecutors are seeking the maximum sentence of 20 years for the men, recalling the testimony of former rebels who said they saw the suspects training insurgents.

In previous hearings, defence lawyers presented alibi witnesses who said the men were not in Colombia at the time prosecutors said they were.

Monaghan is an IRA veteran who was convicted in 1971 for possessing explosives and conspiring to cause explosions.

Connolly lived in Cuba for several years, where he served as the Latin American representative for Sinn Féin.

McCauley was wounded during a police ambush at an IRA arms dump in 1982 and was later convicted of weapons possession.