This article analyses the epistemic dimensions of the false positives phenomenon in Colombia, where thousands of civilians were forcibly disappeared and extrajudicially executed by members of the Armed Forces and later falsely presented as combat casualties. Drawing on recent epistemological theories, we argue that these crimes were enabled not only by the deliberate production of ignorance – through concealment, victim profiling, denial, and discrediting of whistleblowers – but also by widespre…
Read moreThis article analyses the epistemic dimensions of the false positives phenomenon in Colombia, where thousands of civilians were forcibly disappeared and extrajudicially executed by members of the Armed Forces and later falsely presented as combat casualties. Drawing on recent epistemological theories, we argue that these crimes were enabled not only by the deliberate production of ignorance – through concealment, victim profiling, denial, and discrediting of whistleblowers – but also by widespread hermeneutical insensitivities that prevailed across Colombian society. These forms of epistemic injustice, rooted in entrenched negative stereotypes about marginalised populations, severely undermined the credibility of the victims’ families and obstructed access to truth and justice. We also explore how these injustices were institutionally produced and sustained, exacerbating the victims’ epistemic marginalisation. Finally, we examine the epistemic resistance carried out by victims’ collec-tives, especially MAFAPO, showing how their practices – public testimonies, symbolic actions, and truth-telling efforts – have disrupted dominant narratives, regenerated public sensibilities, and reconfigured the public knowledge space, thus playing a decisive role in confronting impunity and reclaiming memory.
