An Open Letter from the Association of Indigenous Councils of Northern Cauca, ACIN, to U.S. President-Elect Barack Obama.

Santander de Quilichao, Cauca, Colombia

Dear Mr. President-Elect,First, please accept our sincerest congratulations. We congratulate you for having won because of the noblest aspirations of your people. We believe your election expresses the deep desire for change felt by the majority of the American people: change in the economy and society, change in international relations, and from there, we hope, a change in the relation between the United States of America and the indigenous peoples of the world.

During your historic campaign, you publicly noted some of what Colombians currently face: you acknowledged the murders of trade unionists by the regime and stated your reservations about a Free Trade Agreement with Colombia, which our people have decided against through a democratic referendum, about which we have written before. We thank you for this, and now want you to know about the specific situation facing Colombia's indigenous peoples.

In the past six years we have lost 1,200 people to assassinations by armed groups, both legal and illegal: right-wing paramilitaries, guerrillas, police, and members of the Armed Forces. These murders have created insecurity, and this insecurity has been used to strip us of our rights with what we call the 'Laws of Disposession', legislation and other institutional norms that legalize the loss of our lands, our fundamental freedoms, and our rights. These 'Laws of Disposession' dispose of Colombia's mines, hydrocarbons, water resources, intellectual property, and national parks – all of these are brought under the ultimate rule of the Free Trade Agreement with the US. The FTA will mean that if Colombia tries to change the laws to allow its people to share in its resources, or take any independent action, then we will be obliged to compensate investors. We will have to submit our laws to international arbitration outside our own legal jurisdiction.

But in our view, the ultimate law is respect for life. In our view, the FTA puts commercial logic above the respect for life itself, not to mention international humanitarian law, and agreements such as the ILO's Covenant 169, and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Worldwide. These covenants, as well as the respect for life, have to date been ignored by the government of our country, as well as by your government.

Unfortunately both of our governments, yours with Plan Colombia, and ours with the so-called 'Democratic Security' policy, have done great harm to indigenous peoples and to Mother Earth, while multinational corporations have profited from the petroleum and gas contracts, mining concessions, privatizations, and low wages.

We hope that you will contribute to change all this. We hope that you will listen to our words. We have lost many lives defending these words. Words that we have walked and words we have backed up with our civil resistance. These are the words that we have shared throughout Colombia since October 10th, through the Minga of Resistance, a national mobilization we convened as indigenous peoples, in association with other peoples and processes.

We believe that the spirit of change in your people cannot be contained. We believe it is a powerful force and we hope it will join with the force of our words and with the need for change that has been crying out throughout Latin America. We invite you to come to listen to these words here in Colombia, and we are ready to articulate them there, if you invite us. Here or there, it is the same planet and our mission is the same: to protect it, to save us all.

Finally, we call on you to join with us in fulfilling our responsibilities to Mother Earth and to history. The first one, our collective Mother, has given all of us life. The second one, History, has reflected our growing pains and our errors. History has not matured into systems that reconcile it with the rhythms, pulses and mandates of Nature. We believe the very reason human beings and our societies exist is to create the harmony between History and Mother Earth.

As children of Mother Earth, we speak to you as to a brother or sister. As indigenous, we speak to you as peoples, obliged from creation to seek harmony between History and Mother Earth. To reconcile ourselves with nature is not an option, but an imperative. By transforming life into merchandise, by making sacred the accumulation of wealth, by enshrining greed, we believe our societies have entered a crisis, including the economic crisis currently faced by your country. The destruction of our peoples in Colombia is a consequence of that Historic error that has placed greed before life.

Brother President-elect Barack Obama, we do not write to ask or demand anything for ourselves, because we know that the death of our peoples and the destruction of our cultures for greed, signifies the beginning of the end for Mother Earth itself.

Before we disappear with our collective Mother, we have decided to speak and to walk our words. In the name of life, of change, let us listen to one another and make the effort to find a way to create harmony between our peoples and life. Let us create the conditions for new History. One where the sacred ends of promotion and protection of Life and Beauty can never again be transformed into means for private accumulation of power at the service of greed.

We await you.With great respect,

Association of Indigenous Couincils of Northern Cauca ACIN (Cxab Wala Kiwe-Territory of the Great People) Cauca, Mother Earth, November 10th, 2008 Santander de Quilichao

Government Addresses Indigenous Movement's Five Main Points - Popular March to Cali Begins Today in Cauca

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

As mobilization in Cauca and the rest of Colombia continues, the government of Alvaro Uribe finally addressed the five point agenda of the Popular and Indigenous Minga, a small step forward after over a week of intense military confrontations with the protesters. The ACIN put out a response to the government's points, as they were getting ready to begin the long march to Cali over the next several days. Here is the Spanish version. Also be sure to check out the report from the International Federation of Human Rights, (FIDH) which was distributed earlier by the Colombian human rights NGO Colectivo de Abogados and is posted below in an earlier blog.

Así vamos trabajando la agenda
10/20/2008Autor: ACIN
El Gobierno Colombiano menciona la existencia de la agenda de movilización de los pueblos. En este texto, avanzamos con un análisis serio de lo que esta implica y propone y lo sometemos a la consideración d ela opinión pública.

En la edición matinal del Noticiero de Caracol Televisión, el Ministro de Agricultura Andrés Felipe Arias finalmente reconoce a nombre del Gobierno Nacional, los cinco temas de la agenda de la Minga de los Pueblos. Aunque la presenta de manera displicente y distorsionada, este es un avance significativo frente a la actitud y declaraciones de los últimos días. Respondemos a este hecho avanzando con unas explicaciones y claridades para que la opinión pública comprenda lo que estamos proponiendo.

En estas líneas hacemos una lectura exclusivamente desde los pueblos indígenas, para ilustrar el análisis de la temática, entendiendo que aplican con especificidades a otros asuntos, pueblos, sectores y procesos.

1. Es claro que nuestra lucha, en el aspecto reivindicativo, incluye el tema de tierras que es trascendental para los pueblos indígenas. Pero lo reiteramos para que quede claro, no exigimos que se cumplan convenios y se resuelvan necesidades y derechos solamente en el tema tierras; el tema tierras no es un problema exclusivo de los pueblos indígenas ni se trata de una exigencia solamente para el Cauca. Sobre este tema seguiremos profundizando nuestras propuestas desde la abundante experiencia, evidencia y documentación que existe de modo que superemos los planteamientos superficiales que viene haciendo el Gobierno desde el propio Presidente. En esencia se trata de que el Gobierno cumpla con compromisos adquiridos que debe conocer la opinión pública. Dado que ya existen acuerdos y convenios, no buscamos negociar nada nuevo por el momento, sino que se de cumplimiento a lo convenido.

2. Frente al tema de los Tratados de Libre Comercio. En primer lugar reiteramos con toda claridad que sí es un tema trascendental de nuestra agenda de movilización y que debe ser abordado. Le recordamos al Gobierno Nacional que el TLC con los Estados Unidos ya cumplió su trámite en Colombia y ha sido aprobado por el Congreso de Colombia. Aunque tenemos reparos serios frente a todo el proceso de negociación, al carácter inconsulto del mismo y al trámite de aprobación, en este momento el TLC está en manos del Congreso de los Estados Unidos. Reconociendo esta realidad, proponemos mecanismos de interlocución frente al Congreso de los Estados Unidos. No tiene ninguna utilidad debatir el tema con el Gobierno de Colombia. Los motivos para rechazar este tratado y otros similares han sido planteados ampliamente y los reiteramos. Recordamos además que realizamos consultas populares transparentes, internacionalmente verificadas y democráticas en las que el 98% de los votantes dieron un rotundo NO al TLC.

3. El tema que hemos denominado “Legislación de Despojo” es ejemplificado por el Estatuto Rural o Ley 1152 de 2007. Tomamos como precedente la Sentencia C-030 de 2008 de la Honorable Corte Constitucional que declaró inexequible la Ley Forestal1 . En ese sentido exigimos que el Estatuto Rural, el código de Minas, los Planes de Aguas y todas las leyes que han debido ser sometidas a consulta previa según lo ordena el Acuerdo 169 de la OIT, Ley 21 de 19912 . Frente a esta demanda, exigimos que se deroguen de inmediato estas leyes (empezando por el Estatuto Rural) y se sometan proyectos de Ley al Congreso, que las sustituyan y que contemplen claramente los resultados y contenidos de un proceso apropiado y democrático de consulta previa.

4. En cuanto al tema de “Seguridad Democrática”, terror y guerra, repudiamos el repetitivo asesinato de indígenas, en promedio más de 100 por año durante los 6 años de presidencia del doctor Álvaro Uribe Vélez, 17 crímenes de los cuales han sido cometidos entre el 17 de septiembre de 2008 y el día de hoy, ocho (de ellos por la fuerza pública, uno (1) por la guerrilla, cuatro (4) por los paramilitares y dos (2) por autores aun no conocidos. La ONIC ha estado elaborando reportes sobre violaciones de derechos humanos de manera seria y sistemática, sin que se haya logrado un compromiso serio y eficaz por parte del Gobierno Nacional para que se detenga la guerra sucia y el terror contra los indígenas, se investiguen los hechos y no queden en la más absoluta impunidad y se establezcan garantías para la vida y seguridad de personas y colectivos en coordinación con los pueblos y autoridades indígenas. El record del Gobierno Nacional frente a los pueblos indígenas es vergonzoso. El diagnóstico y las recomendaciones hechas por el Relator Especial para los Pueblos Indígenas de Naciones Unidas, sigue siendo válido. Hay evidencia de un franco deterioro que apunta hacia el etnocidio y genocidio e inclusive la extinción de varios pueblos. A esto se suma el tratamiento criminal y de guerra que se le dio a la presente movilización, lo que amerita una investigación y documentación que conduzca a procesos de verdad, justicia y reparación integral a la vez que a la protección real de los pueblos indígenas en tanto pueblos y culturas y sujetos de derechos. En este momento, como consecuencia de los señalamientos fabricados y falsos que nos ha hecho el Gobierno y la fuerza pública como terroristas y manipulados por las FARC, nos ha involucrado directamente en el conflicto armado y en razón de esto, ha provocado un riesgo inminente de ataques contra la integridad, bienestar y seguridad individual y colectiva de todos los que hemos tomado parte en la Minga de los Pueblos. Responsabilizamos al Gobierno Nacional de haber creado esta situación de riesgo y de inminente amenaza contra nuestros pueblos. El propio Estado que debe protegernos, nos amenaza. En consecuencia, se hace necesaria la intervención y presencia inmediata de una comisión internacional que pueda asumir funciones concretas para que se de respuesta real a esta gravísima situación. Comisión para la que solicitamos la presencia y coordinación de James Anaya, Relator Especial para los Pueblos Indígenas de las Naciones Unidas.

Durante la presente movilización, al igual que durante todo su mandato, el Presidente Uribe y su Gobierno, han asumido una actitud particularmente preocupante frente a los pueblos indígenas, insistiendo en negarnos los derechos específicos que debe reconocernos y garantizarnos por mandato constitucional y legal. Insiste en presentar estos derechos como privilegios inmerecidos o abusos, en el propósito de generar resentimiento y promover conflicto con otros sectores sociales. Llamamos la atención sobre esta actitud y políticas peligrosas y amenazantes, que van generando discriminación y promoviendo prejuicios.

El Presidente y el Ministro de Agricultura manipulan cifras e interpretan diversos hechos de manera distorsionada para que otros sectores y la ciudadanía en general perciban que recibimos privilegios inmerecidos o que, peor aún, somos culpables de sus problemas y dificultades. Esto es falso y no tiene sustento en la realidad. La pobreza y la injusticia social nos afectan y son responsabilidad de las políticas de Estado de las que somos víctimas.

Afirmamos nuestro compromiso con el bienestar de todos los pueblos, con la equidad y la justicia social y lo hacemos como pueblos ancestrales y originarios. En consecuencia, exigimos que el Gobierno cese en su empeño de confundir la garantía de derechos colectivos, justicia social y equidad, obligaciones permanentes postergadas y negadas desde el Estado, con el derecho a la diferencia y el respeto por la diversidad.

Como pueblos indígenas, exigimos que la Declaración de las Naciones Unidas sobre los Derechos de los Pueblos Indígenas sea ratificada por el Estado Colombiano como Ley de la República. De la misma manera, respaldamos los derechos específicos de los demás pueblos y sectores sociales, siempre dentro un marco de justicia social y equidad. Lo que es aberrante y debe desaparecer es la concentración de tierras y riquezas y la legislación que garantiza beneficios y privilegios a gamonales, terratenientes, estratos altos y transnacionales a costa de la pobreza y explotación de la mayoría.

Una vez que nuestra agenda sea reconocida, comienza un proceso ya postergado de manera excesiva e innecesaria para abordarla y resolverla de manera integral y seria. Ello impone transformaciones profundas, no solo frente a los pueblos indígenas, sino para todos los sectores y todo el país. Se requiere asumir esta realidad de la manera más seria y madura posible. Seguir postergando estas transformaciones es irresponsable y está sumiendo al país en una sin salida que hasta ahora beneficia algunos intereses particulares, pero que resulta insostenible en el corto plazo, aún para quienes han acumulado beneficios. Transformar la institucionalidad Colombiana para beneficio de toda la sociedad, es necesario, posible e inevitable.

El manejo irresponsable que le da el Gobierno y los medios comerciales de comunicación a estos temas, requiere de la movilización consciente de amplios sectores y de la consolidación y desarrollo práctico de una agenda nacional en Minga para avanzar hacia el país posible y necesario. Esta Minga se propone establecer un camino sólido desde los pueblos para construir y poner en marcha una agenda de unidad, desde la diversidad y el respeto, a partir de sentir y compartir el dolor para que se haga camino de vida y libertad.

Asociación de Cabildos Indígenas del Norte del Cauca-ACINACIN – Cxab Wala KiweSantander de Quilichao, Octubre 20 de 2008.

1. Dice la sentencia literalmente_AA_CoLoN_ “Para que se hubiese cumplido con el requisito de la consulta habría sido necesario, poner en conocimiento de las comunidades, por intermedio de instancias suficientemente representativas, el proyecto de ley; ilustrarlas sobre su alcance y sobre la manera como podría afectarlas y darles oportunidades efectivas para que se pronunciaran sobre el mismo. Ese proceso no se cumplió, razón por la cual la Corte concluye que, dado que la ley versa sobre una materia que se relaciona profundamente con la cosmovisión de esas comunidades y su relación con la tierra, y que, por acción o por omisión, es susceptible de afectarlas de manera directa y específica, no hay alternativa distinta a la de declarar la inexequibilidad de la ley.

2. Por todo lo anterior, la Corte declarará la inexequibilidad de la Ley 1021 de 2006 “Por la cual se expide la Ley General Forestal”.

No More Murders of Indigenous People in Colombia!

International Federation for Human Rights Press Release October 17, 2008 Paris, Bogota, October 17, 2008 – <http://www.colectivodeabogados.org/article.php3?id_article=1446> --

The International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) repudiates the violent repression of the protest carried out by the indigenous communities in several departments of Colombia, which as of October 16 had resulted in one indigenous person dead, more than 100 wounded –many gravely–, and 8 families being evicted. [1] 19 police officers had also been wounded.

Since October 11, approximately 10,000 indigenous persons have been mobilized throughout the country to celebrate the "Minga for Social and Community Resistance" in order to remember the anniversary of the landing of the Spanish on the American continent and to request the respect for their fundamental rights, beginning with their right to life [2] and the reestablishment of their territorial rights, in accordance with the commitments of the Colombian government before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. [3]

The Indigenous Communities concentrated in La María, an indigenous reservation declared a territory of peace and co-existence by the Colombian government in 1999 (municipality of Piendamó, located in the center of the department of Cauca), as well as along the Pan-American Highway. Since October 13, a contingent of at least 1000 armed men (including personnel from the national police, the anti-riot police –ESMAD–, and the national army) have been present in Cauca, supported by armored cars and helicopters.

On October 14, General Páez Varón issued an ultimatum to protestors to disperse from the highway, warning that otherwise they would be forcibly cleared. He also asserted the movement was infiltrated by the FARC, which later was refuted by indigenous leaders. In the early morning of October 15, the protestors were assaulted with rifles, tear gas, and hand grenades, which caused the death of one person and wounded dozens more. On previous days, several persons had also been wounded and four arbitrarily detained. The FIDH repudiates this disproportionate use of force and expresses its profound concern for the reports of armed civilians protected by the police shooting at the protestors from the mountainside, as well as for the acts of barbarity committed by members of ESMAD, which resulted gravely wounding an indigenous person with a machete. They had also left this person on the ground for several hours and impeded the arrival of ambulances to assist him.

The FIDH also denounces the attack perpetrated by the armed forces against the health center and the destruction of first aid kits being used by indigenous persons to assist the wounded, as well as for having impeded the arrival of an ambulance and obstructing the work of medical staff and human rights defenders. The destruction of several houses belonging to indigenous persons is also repudiated.

The FIDH recalls that these grave events occur within a general context of grave, systematic and repeated violations of the rights of indigenous peoples in Colombia. In the last month, 29 indigenous persons were murdered, [4] and over the last six years more than 1,240 indigenous persons have been murdered in Colombia [5] and at least 53,885 displaced. [6] Within this context, we are also deeply concerned by the statements made by senior government authorities, including the President of Colombia, according to whom terrorists have infiltrated the protestors. [7]

In this respect, it has also been reported two members of military intelligence were found with camouflage uniforms, two-way radios, and a weapons and explosive manual. They were retained inside of the La Maria reservation and turned over to the commission made up of the United Nations and State control agencies. These accusations and manipulations open the possibility for even more ferocious repression.

In this respect, the FIDH recalls that on days prior to the march the Embera Chami indigenous persons Luz Marina Morales, Mauricio Largo Bañol and Cesar Largo Alarcon were massacred –and the 70-year-old Maria Angelica Alcarcon was wounded- by the paramilitary structure called « Black Eagles ». The same situation has occurred in the Department of Cauca where in the past days 11 Paez indigenous persons have been murdered, including Nicolás Valencia Lemus, Celestino Rivera, César Hurtado Tróchez, and former senior advisor of CRIC Raul Mendoza, on September 28, 2008.

One month before the mobilization, the Paez had received death threats from the same paramilitary group, as well as the announcement of an extermination during the march, incidents which coincided with the resignation of Juan José Cháux Mosquera, former governor of Cauca and ambassador in the Dominican Republic, due to his alleged ties with paramilitarism in Colombia. [8]

The FIDH urges President Uribe to agree to the request for dialogue formulated since October 9 by the indigenous communities that demand the guarantee of their fundamental rights, beginning with the right to life, respect for their territory, and the immediate cessation of armed operations against the social mobilizations carried out by indigenous communities and peasants.

The FIDH also requests for these incidents to be the object of a prompt and impartial investigation and to punish the authors of these crimes. Likewise, it calls upon the Human Rights Ombudsman’s Office (Defensoría del Pueblo) and the Inspector General’s Office (Procuraduria General de la Nación) to be present in the affected area.

The FIDH calls upon the international community to urgently send and international mission to investigate these graves events. This is essential since the mass media has not been able to reach said areas. [1]

In the following distribution: Department of Cauca, one indigenous person murdered, 89 gravely wounded, 7 of them by gunfire, 17 by explosive devices, and 21 by machete, 8 families evicted and attempted violation of a minor. Department of Valle 26 indigenous persons wounded. Department of Risaralda 14 indigenous persons wounded by the Colombian public force (Sources: Autoridad Nacional de Gobierno Indígena – ONIC and Sistema de Información Nacional sobre Derechos Humanos – SINDH; Asociación de Cabildos Indígenas en el Norte del Cauca (ACIN), Saldo de la Barbabarie cometida en la María Piendamó, October 16, 2008, http://www.nasaacin.org/noticias.htm?x=8918). [2]

Likewise, requests have been made for special measures to be implemented urgently and in a coordinated fashion with the indigenous authorities insofar as the present grave humanitarian crisis, especially for those communities and peoples facing extinction, as well as measures to overcome the impunity of grave human rights violations. [3]

Several agreements were signed between indigenous communities and the Colombian government, including the collective reparation of land the Colombian State Colombia promised to turn over to indigenous communities in Cauca, within the framework of the process for a friendly solution signed before the IACHR, for the massacre committed on December 16, 1991, in which 20 Paez indigenous persons were murdered in the municipality of Caloto (Cauca), and the responsibility for which was attributed to members of the national police and paramilitary structures.

[4] ONIC – SINDH. [5] From January 1, 2002, and October 15, 2008 (ONIC, Las cifras del genocidio contra los pueblos Indígenas de Colombia. October 2008). [6] Coordinadora Andina de Organizaciones Indígenas (CAOI). [7] See discourse presented by President Uribe at the press conference this past Wednesday « Diálogo, sí; violencia y bloqueos, de ninguna manera: Presidente Álvaro Uribe », October 15, 2008, http://web.presidencia.gov.co/sp/2008/octubre/15/09152008.html. [8] See: Radio Caracol, Fiscalía investigará a Juan José Chaux, September 16, 2008 http://www.caracol.com.co/nota.aspx?id=671703.

An Historic Day for Indigenous Peoples

The following message was sent by the Association of Indigenous Councils of Northern Cauca, ACIN, on Sunday.

An Historic Day for Indigenous Peoples"We don´t have a Government" was the conclusion reached by Feliciano Valencia, a native Nasa leader from CRIC during his speech at the press conference at La María Piendamó. In a deep, firm and measured tone, his words were heard in profound silence by an audience of about 5000 indigenous people and some representatives of the Colombian media.

Feliciano began the initial part of his speech by making a number of very strong points which began with "It is not true that....". Indigenous peoples are not terrorists, the mobilization (Minga) is not controlled or run in coordination with FARC, land is not the main nor the only issue, indigenous peoples have not negotiated, nor reached an agreement with the Colombian Government, contrary to what was falsely stated by the Ministers of Justice and the Interior, Agriculture and Social Welfare, Indigenous peoples did not attack the Colombian armed forces and were instead mercilessly and brutally attacked with live ammunition which have left 132 wounded, one dead and one dying, the Government has not fulfilled its obligations with indigenous peoples and has made no effort to keep its promises.

Feliciano then proceeded to describe the Government´s and media behaviour towards the mobilization."We invited the President to a dialogue and he responded with a military assault." Feliciano described the mediatic manipulations, the lies fabricated by the commander of the Police, President Uribe, the head of the Secret Service and several Ministers.

Beyond recent events, Mr. Valencia explained how indigenous peoples are being exterminated not only through a permanent dirty war, military offensives and crossfire, but also through policies of extermination, exploitation and exclusion that have become systematic under the current administration in order to deliver the country´s wealth to transnational corporate interests. This account lead to the indictment: "We don´t have a Government in Colombia".Consequently, the Minga convenes the primary constituent assembly. The people of Colombia. All Colombians. Not to follow an indigenous agenda but to weave a collective agenda, a new country from our collective demands and pain.Feliciano proceeded to outline the five point agenda:

1. No to the economic model and the FTA´s with the US, Canada and Europe;
2. A removal of the legislation that empoverishes peoples, destroys and denies rights and freedoms, delivers the wealth of the country to corporate interests and has not gone through consultation with those affected;
3. No more war and terror as the main Government policy.
4. Respect and application of international and national agreements and establishment of the conditions that will allow the people to construct a new, possible and necessary country.
5. A proposal not for indigenous peoples, but from them, to construct jointly a new society.

The authorities announced a march towards the city of Cali, which will leave from La María next Tuesday. Other social movements and organizations have announced that they will join and mobilize and the whole country is invited to mobilize and gather in Cali.The words have been stated and now the talk will be walked until a new reality gets on the way, from a country with owners and no peoples, to a country of the peoples without owners.

Today, we heard one of the wisest and clearest statements in recent Colombian history. From being marginalized and defamed as terrorists, from being wounded and murdered like rats, from being lied about and abused, from being excluded, indigenous peoples have stood back and shown their wisdom and dignity taking on their leadership as masters of wisdom for the construction of a new world on this territory of Mother earth now known as Colombia.

The audio recording will be posted on http://www.nasaacin.org/ . Now, tired, saddenned by the wounded and dead who will lead the march, indigenous peoples are standing strong to convene the transformation of Colombia.

A major struggle for which they request the solidarity and support of international observers.Visit http://www.nasaacin.org/ for more details.

No More Terror and Avarice: We propose a new path for the people for a new country

October 16, 2008Author: Minga of the PeopleWhat we are proposing today was already presented to the public in September 2004, when we organized the historic First Indigenous and Popular Congress. They are five basic points that cover many other issues. We have listened with considerable attention to the voices of many diverse sectors within Colombia and throughout the world. We have clearly put forward what it is that hurts us, and have compiled the accumulated pain of many peoples and processes. We want to be practical and concrete.For full translated text, visit:http://mamaradio.blogspot.com/2008/10/official-proposal-of-indigenous-and.html

Another Colombian Military Massacre

From Public Citizen's Blog Eyes on Trade

This attack by Colombian Armed Forces is only the most recent in wave of brutal repression and paramilitary violence against indigenous, Afro-Colombian, labor and human rights advocates in recent weeks. Over the past two days, the Army has assaulted indigenous activists protesters, killing at least two and injuring over a hundred. Scroll down to take action in their support.

According to CNN:
The Indians are protesting the Colombian government's free market economic policies; regional landowners they say have stolen their territory; and government plans for a free-trade deal with the United States. To read more about thist situation click here.

History Repeats Itself For Indigenous Communities in Colombia

Mass Mobilization Facing Government Backlash in Northern Cauca Amidst “State of Internal Commotion”

By Mario A. Murillo(Bogotá, Colombia; October 14, 2008)

As I write this, over 12,000 indigenous activists and representatives of other popular and social sectors of southern Colombia are urgently congregating in the “Territory of Peace and Coexistence” in La Maria Piendamó, in Cauca, confronting a massive presence of state security forces who have been ordered to dislodge them.

The popular mobilization began on October 12th, and was called to protest the militarization of their territories, the US-Colombia Free Trade Agreement, and the failure of the government of President Alvaro Uribe to fulfill various accords with the indigenous communities relating to land, education, and health.On Monday, as expected, the communities participating in the indigenous protest blocked a portion of the Pan American Highway that connects the cities of Popayán and Santander de Quilichao, in the department of Cauca, in an act of civil disobedience meant to force the government to meet with them to discuss some of their demands.

Instead, what we’ve seen over the last two days are serious confrontations between special-forces police units and the communities assembled, with several indigenous activists severely wounded, one possibly fatally, in the ensuing clashes. These unfolding developments come just days after two other Nasa Indians – Nicolás Valencia Lemus and Celestino Rivera - were assassinated by unidentified gunmen late Saturday night and into Sunday morning, a few hours before the start of the mobilization, bringing the total number of indigenous activists killed in the last three weeks throughout Colombia to 11. To Read More Click Here.

What is happening in Cauca?

CIP Colombia Program

Thousands of indigenous activists gathered yesterday for a protest in northern Cauca department, part of a nationwide day of indigenous mobilizations to commemorate what we in the United States call "Columbus Day."

By several accounts, as the protests - and accompanying road blockages - entered a second day, the Colombian government has begun responding violently.

The worst case appears to be in La María, in the municipality of Piendamó, in Cauca department. Information received so far has been sketchy, but the Cauca Regional Indigenous Council (CRIC) reports that Colombian security forces have fired into a crowd, wounding as many as twenty-five people, some very seriously.

It is unclear what is going on, but our inbox is filling up with alerts. A main source of information, the website of the Indigenous Cabildos of Northern Cauca (ACIN), has been down - and reportedly blocked - since late this morning.

We are monitoring the websites of the CRIC, the National Indigenous Organization of Colombia (ONIC), and the Colombia Indymedia page.

Meanwhile El Tiempo, Colombia's largest newspaper, has nothing about the events in Cauca. Instead, its website is featuring soccer news on its front page, along with an article exhorting readers to wash their hands before eating, and an article about a man in Florida who tried to pay for his food with marijuana.

The Voices of Indigenous People Felt Throughout the Americas

By Natalia Cardona

This past week was a big week for Indigenous peoples in the Americas as a whole. They along with thousands of social activists mobilized during the III Social Forum of the Americas which took place in Iximulew (known in the mainstream as Guatemala) to share their experiences of resistance and struggle, their demands and proposals, to meet and get to know one another and to advance collectively in the building of Another American Continent which is possible and necessary. Meanwhile, in Colombia thousands of Indigenous people also took to the streets to bring attention to their plight and the humanitarian crisis they face. On October 12, the 516th anniversary of Columbus’ arrival in the Americas, Indigenous people in Colombia gathered to mourn all those who have been lost in the struggle to better their situation and to call attention to their proposals for change.

Protesting U.S. Policies
Colombian Indigenous Peoples are protesting the pursuit of militaristic and economic policies that have placed 18 of 84 indigenous groups at the brink of physical and cultural extinction and created a humanitarian crisis for the entire population. Among these policies are Plan Colombia and the U.S. Colombia Free Trade Agreement (FTA). These policies were promoted by the U.S. in tandem with the current Colombian administration. Their effects are systematic and harsh for the indigenous movement and indigenous peoples as a whole.

The Effects of U.S. Policy on the Humanitarian Crisis
Plan Colombia has led to the militarization of the rural areas and displacement of thousands of indigenous people. The fumigation that accompanies this militarization caused hunger in many communities as planes do not distinguish between food crops and coca crops. Also, many innocent civilians were killed over the past years and passed off by the Colombian military as guerrillas in an effort to show success in battles against guerrillas. The U.S.-Colombia FTA, which has not been passed in the U.S., already had negative effects for the Indigenous of Colombia. Laws which govern their rights and protect their culture and ties to the land are being dismantled in preparation for the implementation of the FTA.

They Will Not Be Silenced
The marches occurred despite violence perpetrated by the “demobilized” paramilitary groups. In South Western Colombia an indigenous man was killed by paramilitary groups known as the Black Eagles in an attempt widely seen by the communities as a way to discourage their march from happening. The man was killed in front of his family as he travelled between communities. The Black Eagles were unsuccessful 7,000 indigenous peoples remain in the march today. Additionally, 800 people from the Bari Indigenous group arrived recently in Cucuta to protest the effects of multinational corporations on their land and the ecosystem. In the Colombian-Venezuelan border the U’Wa peoples, who are also trying to prevent the exploitation of oil in their territory, were told the march was cancelled by members of the U.S. funded Colombian military. The U’Wa travelled through inner river channels to reach a local oil field 1,111 of them arrived there to cleanse the area and ask for forgiveness from mother earth. The U’Wa believe oil is the blood of mother earth and have threaten collective suicide should the process continue.

Proposals
Indigenous peoples in Colombia this week released a set of demands and proposals. They are asking the Colombian government to:
· Create and implement a set of measures to deal with the humanitarian crisis facing the Indigenous groups and their leaders,
· Reestablish and come into compliance with agreements the government made with Indigenous peoples,
· To ratify the UN Declaration on Indigenous Peoples,
· To repeal laws that erode the rights of Indigenous peoples, and
· For truth, justice and reparations for the victims of paramilitary crimes.

For more about the marches you can visit: http://www.onic.org.co/

A Note of Celebration and Caution—Regarding the Release of Colombian and American Hostages

By Natalia Cardona

The news that 14 hostages held by the FARC in Colombia were freed on Wednesday July 2, came as both a surprise and a great relief. Their freedom and wellbeing was celebrated around the world.

Having seen the disturbing footage of these same hostages when the FARC’s proofs of life were intercepted earlier this year everyone rejoiced at their freedom when it was revealed. Greater joy was brought on by the fact that the operation went off without escalating the violence or leading to a full-scale massacre. Watching the videos of the captives, including Ingrid Betancourt and the 3 hostages from the United States as they were united with their families was surely a reason to celebrate. No one should be held hostage or be treated so cruelly.

But the celebratory tones are muted by the fact that the FARC still holds 700 hostages and hundreds more are being held or were disappeared for political reasons by paramilitary groups with close ties to the Colombian military and government officials. Moreover, recent reports put into question whether this operation actually happened in the way the Colombian government describes. Details of this operation will surely be revealed in years to come but the following is a summary of what has been reported thus far.

Moreover, Colombia is still facing severe problems related to its 50 year old conflict. Ongoing paramilitary, military and guerrilla violence and massive economic inequalities compound the problems and force many of the poorest to grow coca in order to survive. U.S. policy towards Colombia including Plan Colombia and U.S. Colombia FTA are misdirected and only add to the social unrest.

The following synopsis should give us some food for thought as we examine the release of the hostages and some of the celebratory and cautionary notes surrounding this event.
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The official details from the Colombian government is that they were able to obtain the release of the hostages by infiltrating the FARC unit that was holding them and its secretariat and posing as a humanitarian mission that was to move the hostages to another FARC camp.

Other versions of what happened to obtain the hostages’ release
Recent reports have arisen from Swiss media stating that the rescue was staged and not a mastermind military operation as was previously noted by Colombian officials. Reportedly $20 million was reportedly paid to the FARC and one of the hostage’s guards was pressured through his wife in order to facilitate the release with intensive involvement of the United States in making the deal. Dominique Moisi, a leading foreign policy expert in France, pointed to this Swiss report as a probability. And French media have raised questions about the relatively good health of the hostages especially given the haggard appearance of Betancourt in the last proof of life video. The French media suggested that the hostages were given food and medicine in preparation for their return.

Today the Colombian government is accusing Jean Pierre Gontard of being the source of the Swiss media report. Gontard, with the Colombian government's permission, has represented Switzerland in previous efforts to broker a peace agreement with FARC rebels and was trying to broker a deal for Betancourt’s release before the operation occurred. The Colombian government is also accusing Gontard of transporting money for the FARC in an effort that is seen by many as a way to draw attention to the ‘failures’ of those who try to obtain the release of these hostages through negotiation.

What of Israeli Involvement?
Another version of the story points to Israeli involvement in the release. Haaretz.com has reported that Israeli security companies were involved in providing advice and equipment to the Colombian government. According to Haaretz, the Israeli activity involved dozens of Israeli security experts, and was coordinated by Global CST, which is owned by former General Staff operations chief, Brigadier General (res.) Israel Ziv, and Brigadier (res.) Yossi Kuperwasser. Asked about the Israeli involvement in the operation Ziv said there is "no need to exaggerate." "We don't want to take credit for something we didn't do," a company source added. "We helped them prepare themselves to fight terror. We helped them to plan operations and strategies and develop intelligence sources. That's quite a bit, but shouldn't be taken too far." Global CST won a $10 million contract to work with the Colombian government at the suggestion of the Israeli government.

The White House released a statement acknowledging the CIA and the National Security Agency were involved in providing intelligence and equipment for the operation. However, the Colombian government stated that this operation was strictly a Colombian operation.

What were the three United States citizens who were kidnapped doing in Colombia?
The three Americans—Marc Goncalves, Thomas Howes and Keith Stansell—worked for Northrop Grumman doing surveillance of coca plantations as part of the U.S.’ failed Plan Colombia. Though the program operated under the authority of the U.S. Southern Command—and included work for the CIA, DEA, and State Department--several Defense Department agencies oversaw different aspects of the program including maintenance, surveillance equipment and data gathering, and more than 12 corporations were involved in outfitting the planes. But no one took responsibility once the contractors were kidnapped. John McQuaid, of the Huffington Post, writes that the program was embedded in a net of institutions but it operated on its own with minimal oversight. Once trouble hit and the three contractors were kidnapped, the institutional netting broke. The company was quick to pass these gentlemen’s portfolios and program to a shell corporation as soon as they were kidnapped—CIAO-- and Southern Command did not take any responsibility until the 3 men were released recently. This case points to broader problems with government contracting, especially in terms of holding these private military companies accountable for their actions abroad and accountable to their employees.

“The Man Ingrid Hugged”
General Montoya the man Ingrid Betancourt hugged and thanked for her release has an extremely controversial record. According to an IPS article Montoya’s record includes previous oversight of the 24th Brigade which the U.S. State Department reported had links to paramilitary groups at La Hormiga, in the Department of Putumayo, where a gravesite of more than 100 civilians killed by these same paramilitaries was discovered in 2001. In March 2007, an intelligence report produced by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) was leaked to the Los Angeles Times and it indicated that Montoya and a paramilitary group known as Bloque Cacique Nutibara "jointly planned and conducted a military operation in 2002 to eliminate Marxist guerrillas from poor areas around Medellin, a city in northwestern Colombia that has been a centre of the drug trade." According to the IPS article Operation Orion began at 2:00 a.m. on Oct. 15, 2002 in Medellín's 13th district. At least 14 people were killed, and residents and human rights organizations testified that about 50 more "disappeared" in the following weeks. And on Oct. 21 of that year the presidential web site featured a statement by Montoya saying that "we will continue, and what we are doing in the 13th district is a message to the violent, telling them: desist, we will go everywhere in the country because urban guerrilla warfare has no place in Colombia."

Certainly the Colombian army should be recognized for their efforts. Yet questions regarding their behavior and previous actions must not be ignored. One successful mission cannot erase a history of human rights violations at the hands of the army which in many cases works in tandem with paramilitary death squads.

The Current Political Crises
The operation took place amid a growing political crisis for President Uribe and his administration. The release of these hostages occurred on the heels of a ruling by the Colombian Supreme court that Yidis Medina, a Colombian congresswoman whose vote was key in passing a law which allowed for President Uribe to be reelected in 2006, was bought by promises of political favors. President Uribe has gone as far as to call the Supreme Court a supporter of terror and is proposing a referendum to right the wrong of his election having been made possible by an illegal act. This presidential proposal has drawn criticism from many sectors who are calling for the President to respect Colombia’s institutions. Many see this step as a maneuver by President Uribe to set the stage for a third run at the presidency. This news also comes amidst the growing parapolitical scandal which links more than 60 congressional representatives to the right wing paramilitary death squads and has led to the arrest of 33 Congress members most of whom are Uribe supporters.

What does this mean for the FARC?
The FARC has suffered many blows in the past few years. Among these losses are the recent operation that led to the release of Ingrid Betancourt; the death of three of its secretariat members; the “misplacement” of the son of Clara Rojas’ (Ingrid Betancourt’s vice-presidential running mate who was also kidnapped),who was discovered by the Colombian government in an orphanage; and the death of 11 deputies whom they were holding hostage. Some point to these setbacks as the beginning of the end for the FARC. Others note that the FARC’s extensive profits from the drug trade will certainly keep it alive. They say it will continue to exist though perhaps not in the same way it does now, especially given that the FARC lacks support among Colombians.

Despite the weakening of the FARC many, including Fidel Castro are today calling for a negotiated solution to the conflict and they insist it is the only way to solve the problems Colombia is facing. And Ingrid Betancourt has added her voice by encouraging the Colombian government to end its “vocabulary of hate” against her former captors. “At some point we must speak with the people we hate,” she stated during an interview with BBC.

What about the U.S.—Colombia FTA and Plan Colombia?
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has stood her ground on stopping the U.S. Colombia FTA from going to a vote. While she extended her congratulations to the Colombian government for a successful operation and the release of the hostages Ms. Pelosi has come under criticism for requiring that more work be done to ensure that Colombian union leader’s rights do not continue to be violated.

Some political analysts have pointed to this operation as a signal to fund Plan Colombia but in a different way, stating that what has worked in the past will not work now. However, they forget that Plan Colombia was originally intended to reduce the amount of cocaine entering the U.S. from Colombia by 50%. Plan Colombia has failed to do that and in 2007 the UN reported that coca growth had increased by 27%. Moreover, it is important to remember the Colombian military’s abusive human rights record and their ties to the paramilitary death squads. Forgetting Plan Colombia’s initial goals is a mistake on the part of these analysts but forgetting the Colombian army’s record and the current political crisis is a recipe for disaster. It is clear, as a Boston Globe article stated this weekend, that no one rescue mission will solve all of these problems.