A recent report from the Prosecutor’s Office in Colombia once again brought former president Alvaro Uribe’s name into the public debate surrounding the so-called 12 Apostles, the paramilitary group that operated in Yarumal, Antioquia, in the 1990s.
The document, released after the second-instance conviction of his brother, Santiago Uribe, for criminal conspiracy and aggravated homicide, includes a direct reference to the participation of the then-governor of Antioquia in the creation of a Convivir — the rural surveillance associations that were later identified by multiple human rights organizations as structures that facilitated paramilitary expansion.
Although the report does not entail the opening of a formal investigation against the former president, nor does it represent a concrete judicial development, it does add another element to a history of intermittent allegations, inconclusive investigations, and political accusations that have followed Uribe since his rise to national power — all of them, to this day, without significant judicial progress.
Colombian prosecutor links former President Alvaro Uribe to paramilitary activities
The report in question details sections of the case file that led to the conviction of Santiago Uribe, including documents found in administrative archives of the department of Antioquia during his tenure as governor (1995–1997). According to the investigators’ analysis, in the process of creating a Convivir called La Carolina in Yarumal, the signature of then-governor Uribe appears authorizing its operation.
The record does not, in itself, constitute criminal evidence against him. The Convivir groups were legal entities created by the state in 1994, conceived as armed surveillance cooperatives to support the security forces in rural areas. However, various national and international reports documented how several of these structures ended up integrating with or collaborating with paramilitary groups.
In the case of Yarumal, the prosecutorial report indicates that some members of La Carolina were connected to individuals later linked to the 12 Apostles, an illegal organization responsible for selective killings of alleged criminals, homeless people, and local opponents. For the Prosecutor’s Office, this contextual connection is relevant to understanding the environment in which the criminal group for which Santiago Uribe was convicted operated.
The mention of the former president comes at an especially sensitive moment: The second-instance conviction of his brother marked a milestone in a process that has taken nearly three decades to be resolved. Santiago Uribe, always close to his family’s political circle, was held responsible for his direct participation in the structure of the 12 Apostles, according to the ruling of the Superior Court of Antioquia.
Alvaro Uribe is not being prosecuted in this case file, but his name has appeared in the public narrative of the case for years. In judicial statements and testimony gathered during the investigations, several witnesses mentioned the then-governor, although without providing conclusive evidence that would lead to a formal investigation. Uribe has always denied any involvement and has denounced political persecution.
This episode adds to a long list of allegations made from different sectors regarding his alleged closeness to paramilitary structures in Antioquia during the 1990s. None of these accusations has advanced judicially to date.
The background: from DAS to the parapolitics scandal
Throughout his political career, Uribe has faced investigations, preliminary inquiries, or mentions in high-impact cases. During his presidency, oversight bodies and foreign courts documented links between politicians allied with his coalition and the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC), in the phenomenon known as parapolitics.
Although dozens of members of Congress and governors were convicted, the then-president was never formally connected to those case files. However, political opponents have used that chapter as an argument to reinforce the idea that there were affinities between Antioquian leaders of the time — among them Uribe — and paramilitary structures.
Another episode that fueled controversy was the investigation into the illegal wiretapping by the now-extint Departamento Administrativo de Seguridad, or DAS, in which authorities examined whether high-ranking officials in his government ordered surveillance of magistrates and opponents. This case also did not lead to charges against the former president, but it left a persistent political echo.
The most recent and visible case has been the process for alleged procedural fraud and witness bribery, opened in 2018 and still pending resolution. After his conviction in the first instance, the former president was acquitted of all accusations of procedural fraud and witness tampering in the second instance. It will now be up to the Supreme Court of Justice to determine the final ruling in a case that goes far beyond the former president himself, as it scrutinizes the most recent past of Colombian politics.