Heavily armed members of the Colombian security forces with riot-shields, tear gas and a water-cannon were on duty at the courthouse in Bogota yesterday for the resumption of the trial of three Irishmen accused of training the country's FARC rebels in explosives techniques. From Deaglán de Bréadún, Foreign Affairs Correspondent, in Colombia
However, the three accused men, James Monaghan (56), Martin McCauley (40) and Niall Connolly (36), did not appear in court, having notified Judge Jairo Acosta that they wished to assert their right to remain silent.
About a dozen demonstrators - fewer than expected - chanted slogans and displayed anti-IRA and anti-FARC banners on the street outside the courthouse in downtown Bogota. Mr Ricardo Obregon, an actor in a Colombian television serial, shouted repeatedly in English, "IRA: take your bombs away". Tension was exacerbated when several panes of glass fell from the 17th floor of a skyscraper directly opposite the courthouse.
Lawyers for the defence were body-searched, their briefcases were examined and they were obliged to show identification. A young human rights observer from Holland stood or sat beside one of the lawyers, Mr Agustin Jimenez, at all times outside the courtroom in the hope of deterring an assassination attempt.
The proceedings began with a protracted wrangle between the judge and the defence lawyers who objected to a ruling by Mr Acosta that he would hear defence testimony first because a number of witnesses, including the former Sinn Féin spokesman, Mr Danny Morrison, had travelled from Ireland for the case.
Mr Pedro Mahecha, for the defence, said this was a departure from logical order and normal practice. The judge modified his ruling and said an officer from Colombian military intelligence would be called as a prosecution witness first. The court was adjourned while the officer was contacted.
Following further argument, the judge agreed that two more prosecution witnesses would be heard this morning, before defence testimony was taken. He said there were difficulties locating the second witness as he had changed his residence and his job so often.
In what was believed to be an unprecedented move in terms of court reporting in Colombia, the judge ruled that, because the accused were staying away, the domestic media could not report the case until the trial was finished.
Major Carlos Matiz, a military intelligence officer, told the court that manuals in Spanish were found in the FARC zone which showed how to make gas-cylinder bombs similar to those first used by the IRA in Northern Ireland.
A group of observers was present, including three members of the Oireachtas: Mr Seán Crowe TD (Sinn Féin), Mr Finian McGrath TD (Independent) and Senator Mary White (Fianna Fáil).