Families remember victims of brutal paramilitary massacres

People from varied social sectors gathered on Sunday 29th August to commemorate the victims of a series of massacres committed against inhabitants of rural afro-Colombian communities by right-wing paramilitaries allied to the state in Southwest Colombia. Over just a few months in the year 2000, hundreds of heavily-armed paramilitaries terrorised the defenceless afro-Colombian communities which live in Buenaventura municipality, close to the main road between the port city of Buenaventura, Valle del Cauca, and the regional capital, Cali. The paramilitaries, working in collaboration with state forces and funded by businesses and landowners, sought to force the local communities to flee for their lives, thus taking away the ‘social base’ of left-wing guerrilla groups, whilst at the same time leaving the path open for mega-projects such as a major widening of the main road. Their brutal methods included cutting their victims up with chainsaws, slitting throats, and forcing families to watch the murder of their loved ones. Locals tell how the army disappeared the day before each massacre, and returned the day after, allowing the paramilitaries to carry out their work undisturbed. The true number of victims of the massacres is still unknown, but is thought to be hundreds.




One of the massacres took place in the small hamlet of Triana. As in other communities, all of Triana’s inhabitants fled the community in the aftermath of the killings, leaving a ghost town in their wake. It was only in 2005 that the community was able to return to the area. In 2007 a small group of women from the community who had lost sons, daughters, husbands and fathers began to organise themselves and became part of the National Movement of Victims of State Crimes (MOVICE). Gradually, more and more women have felt able to defy the fear that still grips many of them, and the group is now made up of around 40 women. It is particularly terrifying for the women to speak out because there are still active paramilitaries in the area, despite keeping a lower profile these days. “We know that they’re here, and that they’re keeping an eye on us, but they need to know that we don’t care- they can’t take anything else from me now, they already took my beloved son”, said one of the women. Unison Northern has developed links with the Triana Women’s group over the past 3 years, and was proud to be able to provide the funding for such an important and symbolic event.

Around 100 people from around the Valle del Cauca region attended the event, representing 17 different communities and organisations including trade unions, human rights organisations, and student groups. The day began with a symbolic ‘convoy’ along the route taken by the paramilitaries when they committed the massacre: stopping at the scenes of 14 massacres along the way to plant a tree at each. The tree symbolized the sowing of life in the place where paramilitaries had sown death and destruction.

The National Movement for the Victims of State Crimes campaigns for truth, justice and comprehensive reparation for the crimes which robbed them of their loved ones. However, as in the overwhelming majority of cases of human rights violations in Colombia, there is little sign of justice being done for the victims’ families. The only person who is facing trial for the massacres is former paramilitary leader Ever Veloza Garcia, aka ‘HH’. ‘HH’ confessed to the crimes under the highly controversial ‘Justice and Peace’ law, which allows paramilitary chiefs who are responsible for some of the worst atrocities in recent human histories to be given maximum sentences of eight years in return for confessing their crimes. “Its a joke,” says Viviana, one of the group’s leaders, “that’s why paramilitaries are still killing today- because they got away with it. And they will keep getting away with it unless we do something about it. But the most important thing about today is that we know we can see that we’re not alone. That helps us in our search for justice- we’re not going to stop until we see justice done.”

Unison Northern regional convenor Clare Williams said, “Showing solidarity with groups such as the women in Triana is crucial, as many victims in Colombia continue to be in grave danger, particularly those who are organising. This is what trade union solidarity is about: supporting those who have suffered injustice, and to provide practical support to their struggle. It’s important to understand that these paramilitary massacres were not just violence for the sake of it- they had clear political motives, and were funded and supported by big business, politicians and the state. Helping the victims’ search for justice and truth can also help us to further understand the true nature of the capitalist system in which we live.”

Unison Northern has developed links with South-West Colombia over the past 3 years, supporting trade unions, women’s groups, indigenous and afro-Colombian communities and human rights defending organisations, and will continue this work with a particular focus to develop links between branches and women’s groups.

Huge mass grave uncovered in Colombia

• Believed to be one of the biggest in Latin American history, with around 2000 corpses
• Many bodies believed to belong to victims of army’s extrajudicial executions

Human rights NGOs, politicians and local communities used a public audience at the weekend to denounce the existence of a mass grave which is believed to contain as many as 2,000 corpses of victims of extrajudicial executions which date from 2005 onwards. The audience had the participation of an international delegation made up of MPs from the UK, the European parliament, Spain and the US, as well as trade unionists and several highly renowned human rights defenders from both Colombia and abroad.


On January 26th, Spanish newspaper Publico reported the discovery of the grave of up to 2000 bodies which date back to 2005. The newspaper says that the bodies were buried there by the Colombian army, who have a heavy presence in the area around the site in the town of La Macarena, in Meta department, about 200km south of Bogota. It is one of the biggest mass graves discovered in the history of conflicts in South American. Jairo Ramirez, from the Committee for the Permanent Defence of Human Rights, said, “The army commandant told us that they (the bodies) were guerrillas fallen in combat, but people in the region have told us about the large number of social leaders, campesinos and community defenders who disappeared without a trace” (http://www.publico.es/internacional/288773/aparece/colombia/fosa/comun/cadaveres). It is thought there could be more than 1000 mass graves in Colombia. The Prosecutor General’s office records show that there are around 25,000 ‘disappeared’ people in the country.

Since the discovery was announced, the government has strenuously denied its existence, thus the decision of victims’ families, local communities and human rights organisations to organise the high profile event last weekend. President Uribe responded by claiming that the event, which was attended by around 1000 people from local communities, was organised by “terrorists who are the enemies of the armed forces”, whilst exalting the “heroism” of the armed forces. Exhumations and investigations into the mass grave are continuing.

Yet another Trade Unionist murdered in Colombia

Takes toll to 31 already this year

On Thursday 17th June, Nelson Camacho Gonzalez was murdered whilst he waited for a bus to go to work at 5.30am in his home city of Barrancaburmeja. Gunmen on a motorbike shot him several times before making their getaway. Nelson worked for Ecopetrol oil company, and was a member of the USO oil sector workers union. The union currently is currently in dispute with Ecopetrol and BP over working conditions. In a statement the union said that it has been the victim of a systematic campaign of violence and harassment by the government’s paramilitary allies throughout the dispute.


Nelson is the 31st trade unionist to be murdered this year in Colombia, making a mockery of the International Labour Organisation’s decision last week to remove Colombia from a ‘black list’ of countries where labour rights are not respected. The decision by the ILO was met with disbelief by trade unions in Colombia. A report released by the International Trade Union Confederation the same week showed that of the 101 trade unionists that were murdered throughout the world in 2009, 48 were Colombians, almost 50%. The report also stated that 557 trade unionists have been murdered during President Uribe’s eight years in office. Colombia accounts for more than 60% of the trade unionists murdered over the last decade around the world.

We call on all of you to speak out as soon as possible, and demand a clear response from the Colombian state, to stop this violent extermination of activists. We also call on you to demand a full, thorough and timely investigation by the Colombian state to ensure that this case does not end in the same impunity which exists in almost all political murders in Colombia.

If you are in Britain, you can direct your correspondence to the Colombian embassy at elondres@cancilleria.gov.co.

Controversial ex-Defence Minister Juan Manuel Santos elected President of Colombia

Colombia’s presidential elections on Sunday 21st June saw ex-Minister of Defence Juan Manuel Santos win a landslide victory over his rival candidate Antanas Mockus. Santos was congratulated by President Alvaro Uribe, and vowed to continue with Uribe’s hardline security and neoliberal policies. Santos gained 69% of the votes to Mokcus’ 27.5%, with an abstention rate of 55%, and will take power on 7th August.

Santos pledged his full support to the armed forces, but promised to ensure that they operate with ‘full respect for human rights’. The claim failed to convince human rights organisations, which point to the fact that Santos was Minister of Defence between 2005-2008, when the bulk of the three thousand cases of extrajudicial executions which are being investigated by Colombian prosecutors took place. The scandal of the ‘false positives’ saw state forces murder civilians then dress them up in combat fatigues to present them as guerrilla combatants. In Chile’s military dictatorship, 3000 people were murdered between 1979 and 1990.

The President-elect also stated that his priority would be to continue to create jobs, whilst also vowing to improve relations with Colombia’s neighbours. Last year an Ecuadorian judge issued an arrest warrant for Santos in relation to an attack by Colombia in 2008, when Colombian commandos crossed the border into Ecuador to attack a camp of FARC rebels, deep in the jungle.

Santos vowed that there will be no negotiation in the armed conflict with FARC guerrillas, and that the only option is to continue to fight the FARC until they surrender. Despite widespread human rights violations, these hardline security policies continue to be popular amongst an electorate suspicious and hostile towards the FARC, which Amnesty International says also systematically violates human rights.
Many have pointed to widespread vote-buying and fraud in the election process in seeking to explain Santos’ victory. However, the margin of the victory is also testament to the success of President Uribe’s 2 administrations, with the help of partisan national media, in shifting public opinion to the right, despite a string of high-profile corruption scandals and international condemnation for its disdain for human rights.

Note: Colombian prosecutors say they are investigating around 2000 false positive cases. However, many human rights organisations and commentatos say that the real number is almost certain higher than 3000, but many victims' families are too fearful of reprisals to come forward.

Urgent Action

Human rights organisations in Southwest Colombia department receive paramilitary death threats yet again
Upsurge in paramilitary persecution and violence continues in the region

At 1am and 8am respectively on the morning of Monday 14th June, a threat arrived by text message to the mobiles of human rights defender Cristina Castro (Committe of Solidarity with Political Prisoners, FCSPP) and indigenous leader Aida Quilcue. The message declares as military objective the following organisations: human rights NGO Nomadesc, FCSPP, Permanent Committee of Human Rights (CPDH), community organisation ECATE, and trade union central CUT Valle. The text read:
“the assembley will be a guerrilla assembley, yet again we have proved that you carry out the FARC’s ideological process death to Nomadesc, FCSPP, CPDH, ECATE, CUT, you will not be saved.x1y” (sic)

The message refers to the Inter-ethnic and Social Public Assembley held this week on Monday 14th and Tuesday 15th June in the town of Santander de Quilichao, Cauca department to denounce and draw attention to repeated human rights violations and violations of International Humanitarian Law committed by state forces, paramilitaries and FARC guerrillas against indigenous, afro-Colombian and campesino communities and social sectors in Valle del Cauca and Cauca departments. All of the organisations mentioned, apart from ECATE, were involved in organising the assembly, which had the participation of the UN and several international human rights organisations. The threat was reported to prosecutor’s office (fiscalia) in Popayan.

Antecedents since the beginning of May
• The threat arrives at a time of increased violence, intimidation and harassment of social sectors in Colombia. A report released last week by Somos Defensores showed that 102 human rights organisations were threatened during May in Colombia, with 7 human rights defenders killed. The Colombian government has remained silent on the issue.
• In the southwest region, on Sunday 23rd May, campesino leader Alexander Quintero was murdered in Santander de Quilichao, Cauca department. Alexander was President of the Alta Naya Association of Community Councils, and a key figure in the investigation into the Naya massacre, in which paramilitaries with support from state forces killed more 100 indigenous and Afro-Colombian community members in April 2001, and forcibly disappeared another 60.
• On 27th May, a man claiming to be a profesional soldier called up the police’s emergency line in the city of Tulua, stating that Berenice Celeyta, coordinator of human rights NGO Nomadesc, ECATE and FSCPP must leave the region immediately because there was an order to kill them.
• Aida Quilcue has been the victim of constant persecution since November 2008, when she led the Minga of Social and Communitarian Resistance in a heated public debate with president Alvaro Uribe about the human right situation in Colombia. Her husband Edwin Legarda was murdered by the Colombian army a month after the debate. On Friday 11th June, six soldiers were found guilty of the crime by a judge in the city of Popayan. Aida and her daughter, Mayerly Alejandra Quilcue, were subjected frequent surveillance and harassment during the court case.
• On 5th May, Berenice Celeyta and Nomadesc, CUT Valle and Sintraunicol were named in a paramilitary threat as military objectives along with several human rights defenders, trade unionists, indigenous and Afro-Colombian leaders and organisations from Valle del Cauca and Cauca departments. The threat was signed by Aguilas Nuevas Nueva Generacion (Black Eagles New Generation) paramilitary group.


We call on all of you to speak out as soon as possible, and demand a clear response from the Colombian state, including a full investigation into these acts of violence and intimidation, in order to prevent an attack against any member of the threatened organisations.

If you are in Britain, you can direct your correspondence to the Colombian embassy at elondres@cancilleria.gov.co.





ASOCIACION PARA LA INVESTIGACION Y ACCION SOCIAL NOMADESC
PROCESO DE COMUNIDADES NEGRAS PCN
ASOCIACION DE CABILDOS INDIGENAS DEL NORTE DEL CAUCA ACIN
CONCEJO COMUNITARIO LA TOMA
COORPORACION SERVICIOS PROFESIONALES COMUNITARIOS SEMBRAR
FUNDACION COMITÉ DE SOLIDARIDAD CON PRESOS POLITICOS VALLE DEL CAUCA
RED DE HERMANDAD Y SOLIDARIDAD CON COLOMBIA REDHER
CAMPAÑA PROHIBIDO OLVIDAR
DEPARTAMENTO DE DERECHOS HUMANOS CUT-VALLE
SINTRAUNICOL
CONSEJO REGIONAL INDÍGENA DEL CAUCA
CRIC
MINGA DE RESISTENCIA SOCIAL Y COMUNITARIA

Emotional Aida Quilcue speech in public debate with Colombian President Alvaro Uribe (with subtitles!)

This video is from the televised public debate between President Alvaro Uribe and his government and the Minga of Social and Communitarian Resistance, on 2nd November 2008.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ev5ypoxWL4

Background:

On October 12th 2008, close to 15,000 indigenous protestors gathered in La Maria indigenous reserve, Piendamo municipality, Cauca department in Southern Colombia, demanding a public debate with President Alvaro Uribe. The Indians wanted to discuss the systematic human rights violation and forced displacement which their communities had suffered for years, and which had reached a crescendo under the Uribe administration. When President Uribe refused to meet with the Indians, the protestors blocked the Pan-American highway. The Indian called the mobilisations a 'Minga of Social and Communitarian Resistance', 'minga' being an indigenous word for an action carried out in unity by a group of people. The government's reaction to the protests was to use firearms against the unarmed protestors (see video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KxcpRabXwyk), which the government initially denied, but was forced to admit when CNN news broadcast a video which showed masked policemen shooting at the protestors with rifles. One protestor was killed, and 122 were seriously injured, many with gunshot wounds.

The Minga attracted a large amount of national and international attention, and President Uribe eventually agreed to a public debate in La Maria, Piendamo. In his opening address, President Uribe criticised the Minga's participants for sitting down during the national anthem, claiming it showed a lack of respect for a national symbol. This video shows Aida Quilcue's opening address, in response to President Uribe's remarks. At the time Aida was spokesperson for the Minga, and leader of the Cauca Regional Indigenous Council (CRIC).

Just over a month after this debate, Aida's husband Edwin Legarda was murdered by the Colombian army in an attack seemingly meant for Aida. On 16th December 2008 he was driving the official CRIC car when he was ambushed. Seven soldiers are currently on trial for the murder, however all are low-ranking regular soldiers. Aida is convinced that the order for the murder came from the top of the government, and vows to ensure that justice is done and those responsible for ordering her husband's death end up behind bars.

Political Murders Continue in Colombia

Last week one journalist and two social leaders were murdered in unrelated incidents in Colombia. On Monday 15th March, human rights activist Jhonny Hurtado was shot dead near his home on the rural outskirts of La Macarena municipality, Meta department. Jhonny was president of the human rights committee in the La Catalina area of La Macarena. The organisation has stated that it had previously received death threats from paramilitary groups. The La Macarena area is heavily militarized and has a large army presence. The human rights committee had also been intimidated by the army units in the area, who have singled them out as ‘guerrilla collaborators’.

On the evening of Friday 19th March, journalist Clodomiro Castilla was shot dead whilst reading on the terrace in his home in the town of Monteria, Cordoba department. Clodomiro was editor of ‘El pulso del tiempo’ news magazine, and worked on several alternative radio shows. He had received paramilitary death threats because of his work exposing links between important politicians in his region and paramilitary death squads. He was subsequently given a bodyguard by the state, but he gave up the bodyguard last year, arguing that he didn’t trust the state to protect his life.

At 7am on Wednesday 17th March Israel Verona was murdered in his rural home on the outskirts of Saravena municipality, Arauca department. Israel was a member of the Arauca Campesino Association (ACA), an organisation which is being literally exterminated by paramilitary groups. Between the end of October and the 1st of October last year, seven members of the organisation were assassinated.

These latest murders come as the European Union prepares to sign a Free Trade Agreement with Colombia, and prove once again that to defend human rights, participate in legitimate, peaceful political activism, or expose corruption is to risk being assassinated in Colombia. Social leaders, trade unionists, journalists, judges and human rights defenders continue to be murdered with alarming frequency, despite the Colombian government’s claims that human rights have improved in the country and that paramilitary groups no longer exist. Because of this situation, the US and Canadian governments are refusing to sign Free Trade Agreements with Colombia until it improves. However, the European Union has stated that human rights have nothing to do with commercial agreements and are not a concern for them. The FTA has met with stern resistance from many politicians and civil society organisations who argue that it will indeed have a negative impact upon human rights in Colombia, and will send the wrong message about the European Union’s attitude towards systematic human rights violations.

Thousands participate in Victims’ Marches all around Colombia

On Saturday 6th March, International Day for the Victims of State Crimes, thousands of victims’ relatives, social organisations and concerned citizens took part in marches all around Colombia . The marchers voiced their opposition to the government’s Democratic Security policy which has seen the complete militarization of civil society, large–scale systematic human rights violations, and massive displacement during Alvaro Uribe’s 8 years as President. They also protested the bubble of impunity surrounding almost all cases of human rights violations committed against the civil population by the army and paramilitary death squads aligned with the government.



Prosecutors in Colombia are investigating more than 1200 ‘false positive’ extrajudicial execution cases, where state forces murder civilians and dress them up in guerrilla uniforms to claim cash rewards offered by the government in return for dead ‘enemy combatants’. Meanwhile, despite the supposed demobilisation of paramilitary death squads they remain active and several respected NGOs have reported that they are growing at an alarming rate. Of the 35,353 paramilitaries who supposedly demobilised in 2003 and 2004, only 698 (1.98%) have been convicted for their offences, despite them being responsible for some of the most horrific, large scale violent crimes against humanity in recent human history. The National Movement of Victims of State Crimes (MOVICE) issued a statement voicing its concern that the vast majority of candidates in May’s Presidential election have vowed to continue with the Democratic Security policy.

This was the third year that Colombia’s victims have marched, and victims talked of the fear and harassment which they must conquer in order to demonstrate in public. “We are treated as criminals and enemies of the state rather than victims. Something must be done about the threats and violence against victims’ families in Colombia” said one victim’s relative who asked not to be named.

Two Thousand March After Another Indigenous Leader Murdered in Cauca Department, Colombia

Civilian Population Suffering Consequences of Escalation in Violence

More than two thousand indigenous community members and representatives from national and international social organisations marched on Friday 26th February in protest over the murder of yet another indigenous leader by armed groups in Cauca department. Andres Muelas was killed in mysterious circumstances on Wednesday 24th February when he was returning home on his motorbike on the Pan-American highway. He was shot in the head and died instantly, possibly in cross-fire between armed groups, or possibly deliberately targeted. The army’s official version of events does not match that of witnesses, arousing suspicion within the indigenous community. What is certain is that Andres was a very popular, respected young leader who at 28 years old was already directing literacy projects and had held several positions on the council of his community.

This year has seen an intensification of the armed conflict in Northern Cauca department after the army installed a battalion with 2000 soldiers in the area. The impact on the civil population has been catastrophic, with several indigenous community members killed in cross-fire, dozens injured, and large-scale displacement of people fleeing the violence which has engulfed the area. Neither the army, the FARC guerrilla group, nor ultra-right wing paramilitaries aligned to the government are showing any regard for the safety of the local population, and are instead seeking to involve locals in the conflict by demanding trying to force their co-operation and forcibly recruiting youngsters. All sides regularly violate international humanitarian law and are responsible for systematic human rights violations.

On Saturday 20th February, six houses and the local hospital were destroyed when the army and FARC combatants engaged in heavy fighting in Jambalo village. Instead of ordering the army to respect the local population, President Uribe claimed that the local indigenous population had stopped the army from capturing some drugs traffickers in indigenous territory, and stated in a clear reference to indigenous communities that the government will not permit the existence of ‘mini Republics of delinquents’. This is in line with the Uribe administration’s policy of claiming that indigenous communities are linked to the FARC, a cynical tactic which makes them legitimate targets for army and paramilitary violence and also fails to recognise the indigenous movement’s categorical rejection of all armed groups and its own political process which has been attacked by all sides in the armed conflict. President Uribe’s comments also ignore the fact that FARC guerrillas have murdered several indigenous leaders in Northern Cauca department after the indigenous population dismantled several FARC cocaine laboratories in indigenous territory.




In the public rally which followed Friday’s march, Cauca indigenous leader Jorge Arias angrily called on all armed groups to respect the autonomy of indigenous communities and abandon indigenous territories immediately, and to “open their dark hearts”. Andres Muela’s brother, Ruben Dario, asked ‘how many more brothers and sisters do we have to lose before they realise that they aren’t going to force us to abandon our territory?”.







Please write to the Colombian embassy and demand that the government respect international humanitarian law and the human rights of the civil population in Cauca department, as well as the territorial autonomy of indigenous communities. You can email the Colombian embassy in London at elondres@cancilleria.gov.co and mail@colombianembassy.co.uk