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End the Threats Against Colombia's Fuerza Mujeres Wayuú
(Wayuu Women's Force)!
The Wayuu women shown here are not part of Fuerza Mujeres Wayuú, who are not shown for security reasons. This photo was taken from a 2015 delegation.
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The Fuerza Mujeres Wayuú (Wayuu Women's Force) are being threatened and followed by the Aguilas Negras (Black Eagles) death squad, and the Colombian government is not taking it seriously. AfGJ recently met with members of Fuerza Mujeres Wayuu and heard first-hand about the threats and harassment. We also traveled to other areas of the Wayuu territory and learned about a general atmosphere of intimidation and danger to the communities. Support for the Wayuu Women’s Force is especially strategic: this group of women go throughout the Wayuu territory to accompany people who are being targeted for their activism. Thus, solidarity with FMW is solidarity with the entire Wayuu nation.
Send the following message to the Colombian authorities calling on them to investigate the threats against the Wayuu Women’s Force and end the harassment and threats against them. Following is an English translation of the letter you will send:
I am writing because I am worried for the safety of the organization Wayuu Women’s Force. And more, I am disappointed by the lack of an adequate response from the Attorney General’s office to this grave and dangerous situation. The threats against Wayuu Women’s Force have risen significantly since 2018. The threats include being followed and flyers against them from the Águilas Negras (Black Eagles), who specifically mention seven Wayuu leaders by name, including the brother of an activist murdered by paramilitaries in 2010. The response of the Attorney General has been, unfortunately, a dismissive rejection and a doubtful declaration that “possibly” the threats are really from paramilitaries, but “probably not”. This position makes no sense. The danger confronted by the Wayuu Women’s Military Force is well known, given that they were the first organization that received protection from the National Protection Unit since 2009.
I am aware of the frequency and gravity of the threats against the Wayuu people and their defenders. During a recent visit by human rights defenders from the Alliance for Global Justice, they heard of threats throughout La Guajira against Wayuu leaders, communities, and organizations due to their efforts to protect their territories and rivers. The threats against Wayuu activists reflect a situation that is occurring in all Colombia.
With respect to the Wayuu Women’s Force, the situations is multiplied. The function of this organization is directed toward the accompaniment of human rights and ecological defenders through all the territory. It is clear, then, that the threats against Wayuu Women’s Force are threats against all the Wayuu people. Thus, I add my voice to the demands of the Wayuu Women’s Force that the Attorney General’s office take these threats seriously and investigate the authors, the Águilas Negras, and bring them to justice.
Retire los cargos contra July Henriquez, Ernesto Caicedo, y Martha Lucía Zamora
Rechazo la persecución judicial contra July Milena Henríquez Sampayo, Luís Ernesto Caicedo Ramirez, y Martha Lucía Zamora Ávila, y el intento de sabotear el proceso de paz en Colombia. Pido que las autoridades de la corte retiren los cargos contra ellos y que el gobierno de Colombia termine todos los ataques contra la integridad y viabilidad de la Jurisdicción Especial para la Paz (JEP).
Aunque en Colombia la persecución estatal y paraestatal contra los defensores de DDHH no es algo nuevo, sí se esperaría que después de firmar los acuerdos de paz, la actitud del Gobierno colombiano no fuese la criminalización, la cárcel y la muerte. Sin embargo, todos los días aparecen ataques al proceso de paz como los asesinatos de líderes sociales y campesinos por los paramilitares, persecución judicial a defensores de DDHH y la ilegitimación mediática de las luchas populares.
Como ejemplo está el reciente caso de July Henríquez Sampayo, Luís Ernesto Caicedo Ramirez, y Martha Lucía Zamora Ávila, funcionarios contratada por la Secretaría Ejecutiva de La Jurisdicción Especial de Paz – JEP. (Justicia transicional nacida del acuerdo de paz entre las FARC-EP y el Gobierno Nacional.) La Fiscalía colombiana ha armado un montaje judicial y pretende imputarles cargos de falsedad de documentos y detenerlas. Pero el mundo está mirando lo que pasa en Colombia. Como internacionalistas, lo que demandamos no es el montaje contra la paz, pero la construcción de la paz, la integridad de la JEP, y el cumplimiento por parte del estado de los acuerdos de paz en lugar de obstáculos.
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