Staff working for the non-governmental human rights organization Corporación Reiniciar, and those on whose behalf they work, are in danger, following a break-in at their office in the capital, Bogotá.
On the morning of 6 November, staff members of the Corporación Reiniciar arrived at the office and discovered that there had been a break-in. The staff reported that locks had been forced on file cupboards and some of the desk drawers. The staff found that a file about the enforced disappearance of a member of the left-wing political party, Unión Patriótica (UP), Patriotic Union was missing. Members of the army have been linked to this particular case. Corporación Reiniciar has campaigned for justice for the families of over 3,000 members of the UP who have been killed or subjected to enforced disappearance since the party was formed in 1985, mostly at the hands of the security forces and army-backed paramilitaries.
The intruders left a piece of black ribbon in one of the cupboards they had forced open. Members of the organization fear that the ribbon was meant as a threat due to its symbolic association with mourning. Also taken from the office were two mobile phones that had been provided by the government as a protection measure for the staff. The safe had also been opened and some money removed, although a considerable amount was left.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The work of organizations like Corporación Reiniciar, defending and promoting human rights, puts them at particular risk of attack and intimidation, especially in situations like the internal armed conflict in Colombia.
In 2002, due to constant threats and their situation of vulnerability, the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights (IACHR) of the Organization of American States granted precautionary measures to Corporación Reiniciar. These urged the Colombian government to adopt security measures to protect Corporación Reiniciar members. On 10 October 2007 the former president of the UP gave evidence on the case of the UP at an IACHR hearing.
This break-in at the offices of Corporación Reiniciar is one of several break-ins at offices of non-governmental human rights organizations this year in Bogotá. (See UA 165/07, AMR 23/018/2007, 28 June 2007).
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Using your own words, please choose a few of the suggestions below to create a personal appeal in Spanish or your own language
- expressing concern for the members of the NGO Corporación Reiniciar whose office was broken into at the beginning of November;
- urging the authorities to take effective action, as deemed appropriate by the staff of Corporación Reiniciar themselves, to protect them so they may continue their legitimate and important work in the defence of human rights without fear of intimidation;
- calling on the authorities to order full and impartial investigations into the break-in, to make the results public and to bring those responsible to justice;
- calling on the authorities to produce policy and plans, in conjunction with human rights defenders, to guarantee their safety according to the principles of the United Nations Declaration on the Right and Responsibility Of Individuals, Groups and Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally Recognized Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, and to make these plans public.
APPEALS TO:
Señor Presidente Álvaro Uribe Vélez
Presidente de la República
Palacio de Nariño, Carrera 8 No.7-2
Bogotá, Colombia
Fax: 011 57 1 337 5890 or 342 0592
Salutation: Dear President Uribe / Excmo. Sr. Presidente Uribe
Dr. Carlos Holguín Sardi
Ministro del Interior y Justicia
Ministerio del Interior y de Justicia
Carrera 9a. No. 14-10
Bogotá D.C. Colombia
Fax: 011 57 1 560 4630
Salutation: Sr. Ministro / Dear Sir
Attorney General:
Dr. Mario Germán Iguarán Arana
Fiscal General de la Nación, Fiscalía General de la Nación
Diagonal 22B (Av. Luis Carlos Galán No. 52-01) Bloque C, Piso 4
Bogotá, Colombia
Fax: 011 57 1 570 2000 (a message in Spanish will ask you to enter extension 2017)
Salutation: Estimado Sr. Fiscal/Dear Mr Iguarán
COPIES TO:
His Excellency Jaime Giron Duarte
Ambassador for Colombia
360 Albert Street, Suite 1002
Ottawa, Ontario K1R 7X7
Fax: (613) 230-4416
E-mail: embajada@embajadacolombia.ca
Corporación Reiniciar
Calle 19 #3-10, Edificio Barichara Torre B
Bogotá, Colombia
Please act as soon as you possibly can. Thank you.
PUBLIC
AI Index: AMR 23/043/2007
UA 303/07
Fear for safety
12 November 2007