The 17-year sentences imposed by the Colombian appeal tribunal on three Irishmen on charges of training FARC rebel guerillas have come as a major surprise to the Government, the men's families and campaigners for their release.
The Colombian court yesterday sentenced the three men to terms of 17 years and over, as well as imposing heavy fines.
The men were arrested in Bogota's El Dorado airport in August 2001 and charged with training the FARC in bomb-making. In the original trial last April, Judge Jairo Acosta not only cleared the men of the terrorist charge but ordered that two key prosecution witnesses be investigated for perjury.
However, in a 144 page judgment yesterday, three appeal judges ruled that Niall Connolly (39), from Dublin, and James Monaghan (59), from Co Donegal, should each serve 17 years and six months in jail while Martin McCauley (42), from Lurgan, Co Armagh, is to serve 17 years.
In addition, Connolly and Monaghan are fined $245,000 each while McCauley is fined $212,000. After serving their sentences and paying the fines, they are to be deported from Colombia.
The men had left Bogota's La Modelo prison and gone into hiding as they awaited the appeal ruling. It was unclear last night whether the Colombian authorities were aware of their whereabouts and how quickly an arrest warrant for the three men could be implemented. They are believed to be still in the Bogota area.
The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Dermot Ahern, described the sentences as "very severe".
Speaking in Brussels last night, he raised the prospect of repatriation if the men exhausted all legal avenues and remained in jail. The Government would make representations to the Colombian Government "to see if there is any way we can get some alleviation in relation to the issue". He acknowledged that "none of these issues are helpful in respect of the evolving peace process".
However he played down the significance of the court decision in terms of what it showed about the level of IRA activity. "The incidents this court case referred to happened some time back," he said.
However it seems inevitable now that the issue will surface in some form as republicans react angrily to the heavy sentences.
The Sinn Féin president, Mr Gerry Adams, expressed "anger and outrage" at the sentences. "This is a grievous miscarriage of justice, which will come as no great surprise given the record of human rights abuses by the Colombian government," he said.
The spokeswoman for the Bring Them Home Campaign, Ms Caitríona Ruane, also a Sinn Féin MLA, said: "We will be taking this to the international forum because there is absolutely no justice in Colombia."
But Democratic Unionist MLA, Mr Ian Paisley Jr, said: "I believe the representation I made directly to the Colombian authorities has not been in vain. On reflection the Colombian justice system has found these men guilty and has punished them."
He added: "Sinn Féin/IRA has yet to answer questions about the exact nature of their trip to Colombia. This sentence sends a strong signal to terrorists and criminals that international terrorist trips will last for more than just a few weeks."
Fianna Fail's Senator Mary White, who visited Colombia seven times to visit the men in jail in Bogotá, said members of the men's families were extremely distressed.
It is understood that there is provision for a counter-appeal but that this cannot be lodged until the courts in Colombia resume on January 12th.