Bogota, Colombia – Seven ex-leaders of the demobilised Colombian FARC rebels have been convicted over the kidnappings of tens of thousands of people during their half-century of conflict with the state.

The decisions, handed down on Tuesday by Colombia’s transitional justice body, the Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP), mark the first individual sentences imposed in the restorative justice process set out in the 2016 peace deal.

The JEP, established in 2017, issued “proper sanctions” on the seven former rebels, sentencing them to eight years of reparations – obligatory work helping clear land mines and search for missing persons.

More than 450,000 people died in the more than 50-year conflict , according to Colombia’s Truth Commission, with more than 50,000 documented kidnappings b

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