Colombia
22.02.02
Urgent Interventions
Colombia: various acts of harassment in the department of Chocó
Case COL 220202
Assassination / Harassment / Threats
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 a reliable source of the various acts of harassment to which members of the communities of Autodeterminacion, Vida y Dignidad at Cacarica basin, in the department of Chocó have been subjected, among them, the assassination of Mr. Ramiro Vásquez.
According to the information received, from February 19th, 2002, paramilitary groups of the Autodefensas Unidas de Colombia (AUC) have been present in the area inhabited by these communities. That same day, two members of the community where detained when they working on the land. One of them was released the next day after having been interrogated several hours.
According to the report, on February 8th, 2002, Mr. Ramiro Vásquez, a well-known member of the community, was assassinated by one of these paramilitary groups. Furthermore, other members of the community where allegedly detained by the paramilitary, and one of them was subjected to torture. The paramilitary reportedly threatened the community with incursion in the next 15 days.
According to the information received, the community of Cacarica had been displaced in February 1997, by a joint operation of the armed forces and the paramilitary. This displacement extended over a period of four years, and the members of the community were provisionally accommodated in Turbo, Urabá, Chocó, and the neighbouring country Panama. According to the report, during this period they negotiated the conditions for their return with the government in a series of different phases that concluded on March 2001. A few months after their return, starting on June, 2001, armed men who reportedly identified themselves as belonging to the AUC, infiltrated into the community in order to subject its members to their economic projects involving coke and African palm crops.
The International Secretariat of OMCT shares its concern, along with various human rights organisations, for the security and physical and psychological integrity of all inhabitants in the communities of Autodeterminación, Vida y Dignidad in the Cacarica basin, in the department of Chocó, as it is well known that in other regions of the country, this type of situations have led to massacres, forced dissapearances, executions, and displacements. Furthermore, OMCT is deeply concerned by the general persecution experienced by the civilian population, the apparent impunity enjoyed by the perpetrators of these frequent human rights violations, as well as the absence of effective protective measures by municipal and national authorities to prevent such acts.
Action requested
Please write to the authorities in Colombia urging them to:
· take all necessary measures to guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of all inhabitants of the communities of Autodeterminación, Vida y Dignidad in the Cacarica basin, and in general of all the inhabitants of the department of Chocó, and take all the necessary measures to prevent a massacre from happening in the region;
· order a thorough and impartial investigation into the circumstances of these events in order to identify those responsible, bring them to trial and apply the penal, civil and/or administrative sanctions as provided by law;
· carry out immediately the given recommendations by international and regional human rights organisations , including the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Commission for Human Rights of the United Nations, and the Inter-American Commission for Human Rights;
· guarantee the respect of human rights and the fundamental freedoms throughout the country in accordance with national laws and international human rights standards.
Addresses
· S.E. Andrés Pastrana Arango, Presidente de la República, Cra. 8 n°.7-26, Palacio de Nariño, Santafé de Bogotá.Fax: (+571) 28674 34; (+571) 286 68 42; (+571) 284 21 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 ; 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)342 97 23;(+57 1)281 75 31 ; 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 22 ; contacto@fiscalia.gov.co ; denuncie@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, February 22nd, 2002
Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.
Assassination / Harassment / Threats
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 a reliable source of the various acts of harassment to which members of the communities of Autodeterminacion, Vida y Dignidad at Cacarica basin, in the department of Chocó have been subjected, among them, the assassination of Mr. Ramiro Vásquez.
According to the information received, from February 19th, 2002, paramilitary groups of the Autodefensas Unidas de Colombia (AUC) have been present in the area inhabited by these communities. That same day, two members of the community where detained when they working on the land. One of them was released the next day after having been interrogated several hours.
According to the report, on February 8th, 2002, Mr. Ramiro Vásquez, a well-known member of the community, was assassinated by one of these paramilitary groups. Furthermore, other members of the community where allegedly detained by the paramilitary, and one of them was subjected to torture. The paramilitary reportedly threatened the community with incursion in the next 15 days.
According to the information received, the community of Cacarica had been displaced in February 1997, by a joint operation of the armed forces and the paramilitary. This displacement extended over a period of four years, and the members of the community were provisionally accommodated in Turbo, Urabá, Chocó, and the neighbouring country Panama. According to the report, during this period they negotiated the conditions for their return with the government in a series of different phases that concluded on March 2001. A few months after their return, starting on June, 2001, armed men who reportedly identified themselves as belonging to the AUC, infiltrated into the community in order to subject its members to their economic projects involving coke and African palm crops.
The International Secretariat of OMCT shares its concern, along with various human rights organisations, for the security and physical and psychological integrity of all inhabitants in the communities of Autodeterminación, Vida y Dignidad in the Cacarica basin, in the department of Chocó, as it is well known that in other regions of the country, this type of situations have led to massacres, forced dissapearances, executions, and displacements. Furthermore, OMCT is deeply concerned by the general persecution experienced by the civilian population, the apparent impunity enjoyed by the perpetrators of these frequent human rights violations, as well as the absence of effective protective measures by municipal and national authorities to prevent such acts.
Action requested
Please write to the authorities in Colombia urging them to:
· take all necessary measures to guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of all inhabitants of the communities of Autodeterminación, Vida y Dignidad in the Cacarica basin, and in general of all the inhabitants of the department of Chocó, and take all the necessary measures to prevent a massacre from happening in the region;
· order a thorough and impartial investigation into the circumstances of these events in order to identify those responsible, bring them to trial and apply the penal, civil and/or administrative sanctions as provided by law;
· carry out immediately the given recommendations by international and regional human rights organisations , including the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Commission for Human Rights of the United Nations, and the Inter-American Commission for Human Rights;
· guarantee the respect of human rights and the fundamental freedoms throughout the country in accordance with national laws and international human rights standards.
Addresses
· S.E. Andrés Pastrana Arango, Presidente de la República, Cra. 8 n°.7-26, Palacio de Nariño, Santafé de Bogotá.Fax: (+571) 28674 34; (+571) 286 68 42; (+571) 284 21 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 ; 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)342 97 23;(+57 1)281 75 31 ; 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 22 ; contacto@fiscalia.gov.co ; denuncie@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, February 22nd, 2002
Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.