Colombia
25.05.02
Urgent Interventions
Colombia: arrestation of 85 workers
ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL RIGHTS CONCERN
Case COL 250502. ESCRC
The International Secretariat of OMCT requests your URGENT intervention in the following situation in Colombia.
Brief description of the situation
The International Secretariat of OMCT has been informed by the Central Unitaria de Trabajadores (CUT), a member of the OMCT network, of the arrest, on May 20th 2002, of 85 workers of Telebucaramanga, a public telecommunication company located in the city of Bucaramanga, in the Santander department.
According to the information received, at approximately 3:30 pm on May 20th 2002, several heavily armed policemen of the SIJIN (Subdireccion de Policia Judicial e Investigacion) accompanied by three public prosecutors broke into the premises of Telebucaramanga, severely damaging the offices of the company, and arrested 85 workers of the company.
The workers of Telebucaramanga had been carrying out a peaceful occupation of the company’s premises since May 14th 2002, protesting against the negative impact that a payment of 800 million dollars owed by the state-owned Telecom to other international telecommunication companies might have on the financial welfare of the company.
Background information
The 6-day peaceful occupation of the premises of Telebucaramanga occurred against the backdrop of the joint venture agreements signed between the state-owned Telecom, which holds 56% of Telebucaramanga, and some foreign telecommunication companies, such as Nortel, Alcatel, Siemens, Nec and Itochu.
According to the above mentioned joint venture agreements, Telecom committed itself to pay to its foreign partners any lost revenue which might arise from the company’s business activity, a sum that should be calculated on the basis of a fixed and predefined amount of revenues guaranteed to the foreign partners.
Thus following the execution of these agreements, it is reported that Telecom today owes to its foreign partners an estimated 1.5 billion US dollars in lost revenues. Telecom’s President, Mr. Gabriel Mesa Zueta, and the Colombian President, Mr. Andres Pastrana, subsequently managed to renegotiate the payment with their foreign partners, reducing it to some 800 million dollars.
Even so, workers of Telebucaramanga are afraid that if the 800 million dollars payment were to be honoured by Telecom, the company itself and all of its subsidiaries, including Telebucaramanga, will very likely go bankrupt, causing a loss of jobs.
Action requested
Please write to the Colombian authorities urging them to:
i. adopt all necessary measures to guarantee the safety and physical and psychological integrity of the 85 workers of Telebucaramanga;
ii. guarantee respect for the economic, social and cultural rights and notably the right of trade unions to function freely, as guaranteed by article 8 (b) of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights;
iii. guarantee in all circumstances the respect of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the country in accordance with national laws and international standards on human rights.
Addresses
· S. E. Andrés Pastrana Arango, Presidente de la República, Cra. 8 n°.7-26, Palacio de Nariño, Santafé de Bogotá.Fax: (+57 1) 2867434; (+57 1) 2866842; (+57 1) 28421 86 ;
· Consejería Presidencial de Derechos Humanos, Calle 7 n°. 6-54 Piso 3, Santafé de Bogotá, D. C. Fax: (+57 1) 337 13 51 ;
· Doctor Gustavo Bell Lemus, Ministro de la Defensa, Avenida El Dorado con Cra. 52 CAN, Santafé de Bogotá. Fax: (+57 1) 222 18 74 ; e-mail : siden@mindefensa.gov.co ;
· Doctor Armando Estrada Villa, Ministro del Interior, Cra. 8 n°. 8-09 Santa Fe de Bogotá, Santafé de Bogotá. Fax: (+57 1) 286 80 25 ; (+57 1) 286 84 05 ; e-mail: minisint@col1.telecom.com.co ;
· Doctor Edgardo José Maya Villazón, Procurador General de la Nación, Carrera 5 n°. 15-80, Santa Fe de Bogotá.Fax:(+57 1) 284 0472;(+57 1) 342 97 23 ; (+57 1) 282 76 14
e mail : reygon@procuraduria.gov.co ;
· Doctor Luis Camilo Osorio, Fiscal General de la Nación, Diagonal 22 B n°. 52-01, Santafé de Bogotá. Fax: (+57 1) 570 20 08 ;(+57 1) 570 20 00; e-mail :contacto@fiscalia.gov.co ; denuncie@fiscalia.gov.co; webmaster@fiscalia.gov.co ;
· Doctor Eduardo Cifuentes, Defensor del Pueblo, Defensoría del Pueblo, Calle 55 n°. 10-32 Santa Fe de Bogotá. Fax: (+ 57 1) 346 12 25 ;
· General Fernando Tapias Stahelin, Comandante de las Fuerzas Militares, Avenida el Dorado con Cra. 52, Santafé de Bogotá. Fax: (+57 1) 222 29 35 ; e-mail : siden@mindefensa.gov.co; pilaque@cgm.mil.co
Please also write to the embassies of Colombia in your respective country.
Geneva, May 24th, 2002
Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.
Case COL 250502. ESCRC
The International Secretariat of OMCT requests your URGENT intervention in the following situation in Colombia.
Brief description of the situation
The International Secretariat of OMCT has been informed by the Central Unitaria de Trabajadores (CUT), a member of the OMCT network, of the arrest, on May 20th 2002, of 85 workers of Telebucaramanga, a public telecommunication company located in the city of Bucaramanga, in the Santander department.
According to the information received, at approximately 3:30 pm on May 20th 2002, several heavily armed policemen of the SIJIN (Subdireccion de Policia Judicial e Investigacion) accompanied by three public prosecutors broke into the premises of Telebucaramanga, severely damaging the offices of the company, and arrested 85 workers of the company.
The workers of Telebucaramanga had been carrying out a peaceful occupation of the company’s premises since May 14th 2002, protesting against the negative impact that a payment of 800 million dollars owed by the state-owned Telecom to other international telecommunication companies might have on the financial welfare of the company.
Background information
The 6-day peaceful occupation of the premises of Telebucaramanga occurred against the backdrop of the joint venture agreements signed between the state-owned Telecom, which holds 56% of Telebucaramanga, and some foreign telecommunication companies, such as Nortel, Alcatel, Siemens, Nec and Itochu.
According to the above mentioned joint venture agreements, Telecom committed itself to pay to its foreign partners any lost revenue which might arise from the company’s business activity, a sum that should be calculated on the basis of a fixed and predefined amount of revenues guaranteed to the foreign partners.
Thus following the execution of these agreements, it is reported that Telecom today owes to its foreign partners an estimated 1.5 billion US dollars in lost revenues. Telecom’s President, Mr. Gabriel Mesa Zueta, and the Colombian President, Mr. Andres Pastrana, subsequently managed to renegotiate the payment with their foreign partners, reducing it to some 800 million dollars.
Even so, workers of Telebucaramanga are afraid that if the 800 million dollars payment were to be honoured by Telecom, the company itself and all of its subsidiaries, including Telebucaramanga, will very likely go bankrupt, causing a loss of jobs.
Action requested
Please write to the Colombian authorities urging them to:
i. adopt all necessary measures to guarantee the safety and physical and psychological integrity of the 85 workers of Telebucaramanga;
ii. guarantee respect for the economic, social and cultural rights and notably the right of trade unions to function freely, as guaranteed by article 8 (b) of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights;
iii. guarantee in all circumstances the respect of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the country in accordance with national laws and international standards on human rights.
Addresses
· S. E. Andrés Pastrana Arango, Presidente de la República, Cra. 8 n°.7-26, Palacio de Nariño, Santafé de Bogotá.Fax: (+57 1) 2867434; (+57 1) 2866842; (+57 1) 28421 86 ;
· Consejería Presidencial de Derechos Humanos, Calle 7 n°. 6-54 Piso 3, Santafé de Bogotá, D. C. Fax: (+57 1) 337 13 51 ;
· Doctor Gustavo Bell Lemus, Ministro de la Defensa, Avenida El Dorado con Cra. 52 CAN, Santafé de Bogotá. Fax: (+57 1) 222 18 74 ; e-mail : siden@mindefensa.gov.co ;
· Doctor Armando Estrada Villa, Ministro del Interior, Cra. 8 n°. 8-09 Santa Fe de Bogotá, Santafé de Bogotá. Fax: (+57 1) 286 80 25 ; (+57 1) 286 84 05 ; e-mail: minisint@col1.telecom.com.co ;
· Doctor Edgardo José Maya Villazón, Procurador General de la Nación, Carrera 5 n°. 15-80, Santa Fe de Bogotá.Fax:(+57 1) 284 0472;(+57 1) 342 97 23 ; (+57 1) 282 76 14
e mail : reygon@procuraduria.gov.co ;
· Doctor Luis Camilo Osorio, Fiscal General de la Nación, Diagonal 22 B n°. 52-01, Santafé de Bogotá. Fax: (+57 1) 570 20 08 ;(+57 1) 570 20 00; e-mail :contacto@fiscalia.gov.co ; denuncie@fiscalia.gov.co; webmaster@fiscalia.gov.co ;
· Doctor Eduardo Cifuentes, Defensor del Pueblo, Defensoría del Pueblo, Calle 55 n°. 10-32 Santa Fe de Bogotá. Fax: (+ 57 1) 346 12 25 ;
· General Fernando Tapias Stahelin, Comandante de las Fuerzas Militares, Avenida el Dorado con Cra. 52, Santafé de Bogotá. Fax: (+57 1) 222 29 35 ; e-mail : siden@mindefensa.gov.co; pilaque@cgm.mil.co
Please also write to the embassies of Colombia in your respective country.
Geneva, May 24th, 2002
Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.