WARNING: Colombian law provides for certain time limits for the execution of several of the steps indicated for criminal proceedings. However, the overload of the Colombian criminal justice system has meant that these deadlines are often not respected and, for this reason, they are unfortunately longer than provided for by law. The Office of the Comptroller General (Contraloria General de la Republica) is headed by a Comptroller General, appointed by Congress at the beginning of each presidential term for a four-year term, who selects one of the three candidates proposed by the highest courts. This official is responsible for overseeing the management and auditing of revenues, expenditures, public and national assets and transactions of centralized and decentralized public institutions, regardless of their organizational forms, as well as other branches of government. It enjoys operational, administrative and functional autonomy. It does not co-manage the public sector; It only evaluates facts, actions, and documents after the organizations to be audited have completed their accounting. Its main task is to approve or reject revenue and investment accounts of public funds, to open investigations into irregularities and, where appropriate, to apply administrative measures and sanctions. The Comptroller General asks the Attorney General to take any legal action that may be necessary. As a civil law country, the Colombian legal system is based primarily on codes and laws rather than jurisprudence. One of the main characteristics of civil law countries is that their legal systems do not recognize jurisdiction as part of their legal bodies, which means that court decisions are binding only on the parties concerned and not on everyone. Judicial decisions are applied on a case-by-case basis and serve as a reference for other judges.
However, in Colombia, as in other civil law countries, the decisions of the supreme courts have acquired more power and their scope is no longer limited as before. In some cases, particularly high-profile cases where issues are disputed, the interpretation of the law by a court is just as important as the written law itself. Colombia`s public alcohol consumption laws can often be confusing for travelers: it`s common for people to drink beer in public in some squares in major cities, often in front of police. Strictly speaking, however, the consumption of alcohol in public is illegal and the decision whether or not to apply the law is left to the discretion of the officials concerned. It`s unlikely you`ll be arrested or serve jail time if the police make an example of you, but drinking in public can result in a hefty fine, so it`s wise to play it safe and take no chances. As one of the most biodiverse countries in the world, Colombia faces a massive battle against the pet trade, with police arresting more than 5,000 traffickers in the first nine months of 2016 alone. From tiny fish larvae hidden in ink pens to huge shipments of crocodiles, iguanas and monkeys, the pet trade poses a major threat to Colombia`s natural diversity. With a maximum sentence of 48 to 108 months in prison, illegal wildlife trafficking or possession is a surefire way to get arrested. Actually not illegal, strictly speaking. But try it and see what the reaction is: you might feel like you`ve committed a crime! The same rules apply to suggesting that James Rodríguez is not really the best footballer in the world, spelling Colombia as “Colombia” and suggesting that Colombian cheese could be improved. You must inform the authorities if you want them to contact the Embassy of Canada to inform them of your detention or arrest. However, if you have any questions about the legal aspects of your arrest, please contact your lawyer.
Consular staff cannot provide legal advice. The Colombian legal system has a legislative origin based on “written law”, as opposed to “common” or “judicial” law, which forms the basis of the American, English and Canadian legal systems. Since Colombia is a civil jurisdiction, its legal system has its roots in Roman law and is strongly influenced by the French system (Code Napoléon) and the Italian and Spanish legal traditions that established a written codification of its laws. As systematic sets of rules on specific topics, codes appeared shortly after the country`s independence. The first civil and penal code appeared in 1873. 1887 is the year of the adoption of the first commercial, judicial and mining laws. It`s a common assumption for travelers to Colombia that you can get away with almost any crime by discreetly offering a handful of banknotes to the arresting officer. While this may sometimes be the case, Colombia is currently taking steps to combat corruption, and attempting to bribe a member of the police or armed forces is a crime.
It`s also illegal for police to demand bribes (more than 400 officers were removed from office in the first three months of 2016 for corruption), so consider reporting any officer who tries to shake you. With a number of UNESCO-certified World Heritage Sites such as San Agustin and Tierradentro, Colombia takes the protection of its archaeological heritage very seriously.