A verdict in the trial of the so-called Colombia Three is highly unlikely until the end of this year, or even early next year, the judge in the case, Dr Jairo Acosta has said.
The trial of the three Irishmen on terrorist charges came to an end in Bogota on August 1st, and Colombian law recommends that judgment should normally be delivered within 15 working days. However, Judge Acosta said in Bogota that his workload had made this "physically impossible".
"The 15-day rule only applies when it's possible," he said. "But there are still between 40 and 45 cases that I need to rule on before this one. Not to mention that I have at least one or two hearings a day on current cases. It is physically impossible to fulfil that requirement." Judge Acosta, who sat without a jury, is one of nine judges in Bogota who specialise in terrorism, kidnapping and drug trafficking cases. Speaking to the Associated Press at his office in a downtown courthouse, he said he usually issues between three to 10 verdicts a month, making a ruling on this case highly unlikely before December.
The terrorism charges carry between eight and 14 years in prison, and the false passports charges between two and eight. If found guilty on all the charges, the men could face up to 22 years in prison, Dr Acosta said.
Mr Martin McCauley (40), Mr James Monaghan (58) and Mr Niall Connolly (38) were arrested at Bogota's El Dorado international airport in August 2001 and charged with training the left-wing FARC guerrilla movement in IRA bomb-making techniques, and with using false passports. They claimed they were visiting the FARC-controlled zone as tourists and to study the Colombian peace process. The FARC lost its safe haven when peace talks with the Colombian government collapsed in February 2002.
Ms Caitríona Ruane of the Bring Them Home Campaign, said at the weekend: "We are concerned about the delay in the decision. These men have already been in jail for 25 months. Justice delayed is justice denied. It is particularly worrying because there is no evidence against these men and that is obvious to everyone who was over there. To even think that they may be spending a third Christmas in jail is very difficult for them and their families. This is a very high-profile case. The situation in Colombia is deteriorating and there is no safe jail for these men in Colombia. We are calling for a speedy decision in this case.
Ms Ruane and one of the accused men's Colombian defence lawyers, Mr Pedro Mahecha, are currently in the US, lobbying human rights and Irish-American organisations in New York and Washington DC on behalf of the defendants.
The case has had a huge impact on the Northern Ireland peace process, with unionists claiming it showed that the republican movement was not genuinely committed to peace.