The International Centre for Trade Union Rights

COLOMBIA BULLETIN 19: 28 February 2004

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During past month ICTUR has received the following reports from Colombia, including serious violations of trade union rights:
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21 January: a pamphlet containing death threats against Jesús Alfonso Naranjo and Mario Mora, the national leaders of the health workers' trade union ANTHOC, was delivered to the Barranquilla office of the union. The pamphlet, signed by a paramilitary group, described the well-known leaders as 'military targets' because of their trade union activities and work as human rights defenders. The pamphlet accused the trade union leaders of guerrilla membership.

26 January: a death threat signed by the AUC paramilitary organisations was delivered to the home of Jaime Carrillo, the President of the Arauca region of the teachers' trade union ASEDAR. The letter also carried threats against Francisco Rojas, former President of ASEDAR; Celedonio Jaimes, General Secretary of ASEDAR; and Marcos Garcia, a member of the union.

27 January: the state-owned mining company Minercol was liquidated leading to the dismissal of more than two thousand state workers, including the entire membership of the mineworkers' union SINTRAMINERCOL. Recently in the mining regions an upsurge in activities by both military and paramilitary units has been reported together with bombardments and heavy and sustained automatic gunfire. SINTRAMINERCOL leader Francisco Ramirez has been an outspoken critic of the military activities. He has recently received several death threats.

27 January: a report from the Colombian human rights organisation Corporación Sembrar complains that military forces from the Battalion Nariño detained mineworkers Giovanny Vega Atencio and Jairo Villalba. Later that day in the same region, Bolivar Department, mineworker Nolberto Campuzano Zuleta was also detained. See below (31 January) for more on this case. It is not known if the detentions were for trade union activities or other reasons.

28 January: death threats were received at the offices of the regional teachers' trade union of Arauca ASEDAR . The threats named ASDAR offices Jaime Carrillo, President; Sebedonio Jaimes, General Secretary; and Francisco Rojas, former President.

28 January: armed men arrived at the offices of the SINALTRAINAL foodworkers' union in a truck accompanied by two motorcycles (without number plates). The men asked for Section President German Catano. Catano was not in the offices at the time.

31 January: a report from the Colombian human rights organisation Corporación Sembrar announces that relatives of the mineworkers who were detained on 27 January (see above) went to Nariño military base to ask about the whereabouts of the men. According to the families, a military captain told them that Giovany Vega Atencio, Jairo Villalba and Nolberto Campuzano Zuleta were members of guerrilla organisations and they had been killed in fighting with the military.

In January: a man was arrested on suspicion of involvement in the murder of SINALTRAINAL union leader and Coca-Cola worker Adolfo de Jesus Munera Lopez on 31 August 2002. Unions have urged the authorities to pursue this investigation vigorously.

10 February: the Prosecutor General has dismissed the proceedings initiated by Coca-Cola against the foodworkers' union SINALTRAINAL. The multinational had complained that its reputation was damaged after SINALTRAINAL lodged complaints in a US court following the murder of union leaders at Coke bottling plants in Colombia.

11 February: Walberto Torres, President of the Atlántico University teachers' union ASPU, and ASPU members Carlos Vargas, Jorge Viana, Nicolas Molina and Sadit Ortega were named and their lives threatened in a pamphlet signed by the 'anticorruption and cleaning' movement which was handed out at the University of Atlántico.

16 February: a handwritten death threat was left at the home of Yesid Escobar, President of the municipal workers' union SINTRAMUNICIPIO. The threats warned that Escobar and his family would be targeted unless he stopped bringing 'foreigners' to Colombia. The threat was received just a few days after the visit of a delegation from New York had visited Nestlé and Coca-Cola factories in Bugalagrande.

24 February: Carlos Raul Ospina, Treasurer of the local union Mertulua in the Valle Department was assassinated together with a colleague when the pair were repeatedly fired upon by a motorcyclist.

26 February: more than 600,000 public sector workers, including teachers, oil workers and courts and judicial staff, joined a march in the capital, Bogotá in protest at government policies of liquidation of state industries and delays to the negotiation of collective agreements in the state sector.

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ICTUR has written to the Colombian authorities to protest against the continuing violations of trade union rights. ICTUR calls for an end to the aggression and insists that the authorities implement and ensure full respect for the international legal standards that protect freedom of association.

For more information contact ICTUR: miguel@ictur.org

If you want to take action in support of these cases you can send letters of protest to the Colombian authorities at the following addresses:

President of the Republic of Colombia
Dr. Alvaro Uribe Velez
Palacio de Narino, Carrera 8 No.7-26 Santafe de Bogota, COLOMBIA
Fax: + 57 1 3375890 / 3420592
E-mail: auribe@presidencia.gov.co; rdh@presidencia.gov.co

Vicepresident of the Republic of Colombia
Francisco Santos - Consejeria Presidential de Derechos Humanos
Calle 7, No 6-54, Piso 3 Santafe de Bogota, COLOMBIA
Fax: 00 57 1 337 1351 E-mail: mdn@cable.net.co; infprotocol@mindefensa.gov.co; siden@mindefensa.gov.co

Minister of the Interior and Justice
Fernando Londono Hoyos Ministerio del Interior y Justicia
Palacio Echeverry, Carrera 8a, No.8-09, piso 2o., Santafe de Bogota, Colombia
Fax:00 57 1 286 8025 E-mail: mininterior@myrealbox.com

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