November 2005 Peace Presence Update

• Afro-Colombian leader Orlando Valencia Murdered
• Making Our Words into Deeds — Partnering for Peace: Colombian and US Communities in Solidarity

Afro-Colombian leader Orlando Valencia Murdered Follow-Up to October 16 Urgent Action by Partnering for Peace Conference Organizers It is with great sadness that we share the news that Mr. Orlando Valencia was found murdered on October 24, 2005; two days later his wife confirmed that the body was that of her husband and the father of their seven children. Mr. Valencia belonged to a community of Afro-Colombians in Curvaradó and Jiguamiandó who have secured their land titles and who are struggling to preserve an environmentally sustainable and traditional way of life in the midst of conflict without using weapons or any form of violence. Since these communities received their land titles, they have come under great pressure from paramilitaries, security forces and corporations that are occupying their lands for the cultivation of oil palm, a monoculture which greatly damages the region's biodiversity. We are deeply saddened by the disappearance and assassination of Orlando, whom we had expected to host at the October 21-23 Partnering for Peace conference in Chicago, co-sponsored by FOR, where he was to represent the Red Ecuménica de Colombia (Ecumenical Network of Colombia). Orlando was invited to participate in this conference given his strong leadership and peaceful activism on behalf of Afro-Colombian communities in the Department of Chocó. Orlando was detained by local police on Saturday, October 15, as he was traveling with fellow community members and national and international human rights accompaniers to a regional community meeting. Shortly after being released by the police, the group was stopped again, and Mr. Valencia was forcibly taken away by members of the illegal paramilitary forces. Members of his family and community were left with no information on where he was taken or how to find him, until his body was discovered. Many national and international organizations and individuals such as yourself wrote letters and brought this issue to Colombian and U.S. officials. A mission with representatives from numerous governments (but not the U.S. government) and organizations went to investigate Orlando’s disappearance, and due to the pressure of many Colombia advocates, this case received much attention. Sadly, what happened to Orlando has happened to many others in Colombia, and all too often these tragedies go unnoticed. Orlando was an outstanding young leader, bringing hope to his community, working for the dignity and protection of his people and land, and his life was taken needlessly. Many other community members, leaders, wives, husbands, children, are taken from this earth and their passing goes unnoticed. In moments like these, as members of a global community, we can take action on behalf of those who need our support. ACTIONS BEING TAKEN BY PARTNERING FOR PEACE ORGANIZERS: * A letter to U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, expressing concern for Orlando's community and calling attention to the ongoing peril faced by Afro-Colombian communities that are taking a stand to protect their land and way of life. * A letter to Colombian President Álvaro Uribe, urging a comprehensive investigation and putting Orlando's assassination into the context of paramilitary abuses in the territory of the peace communities. ACTIONS YOU CAN TAKE: Write to the U.S. State Department and ask them to: * Urge the U.S. Embassy to issue a public statement condemning the murder of Orlando Valencia and stating support for Afro-Colombian leaders and their community processes. * Consider this case within the human rights certification process for Colombia, because of evidence of collaboration between illegal paramilitary groups and Colombian public forces. * Use other mechanisms available to the United States in order to ensure that this crime does not remain in impunity. Contact Info: The Honorable Condoleezza Rice U.S. State Department 2201 C Street, NW Washington, DC 20520 Write to the Colombian government and ask them to: * Investigate the conduct of the police in Belén de Bajirá and suspend the head of police of this station for singling out Orlando Valencia. * Dismantle the paramilitary structures that coexist with state authorities in Belén de Bajirá, Mutatá, Chigorodó, Barranquillita, and Pavarandó. * Adhere to the precautionary measures issued by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights. Contact Info: Dr. Carlos Franco Director, Program of Human Rights, Vice-Presidency of Colombia E-mail: cefranco@presidencia.gov.co In your community and church: * Continue to hold Orlando’s family and the communities in his home region of Curvaradó, and all people in Colombia, in your prayers. Our Colombian brothers and sisters face many tragedies, and we hope that our own actions here in the U.S. can help to prevent such atrocities in the future. (Sample prayer below.) * Write a brief personal message. Lutheran World Relief is collecting, translating and sending sympathy cards to Orlando’s family and community. If you would like to express your condolences, please send your cards to: LWR Colombia Program 700 Light Street Baltimore, MD 21230 SAMPLE PRAYER FOR USE IN YOUR HOME OR IN YOUR PLACE OF WORSHIP Merciful God, Console all who mourn the death of peacemaker Orlando Valencia. Comfort his widow, family and community in their grief. Keep us all mindful of other community members, leaders, wives, husbands, and children unknown to us, who are disappeared, killed and threatened each day due to ongoing conflict and violence. Keep us steadfast as we work for your peace and your justice for all Colombians. Renew in us hope that your justice will one day roll down like mighty waters upon all of creation. —Amen. Partnering for Peace: Colombian & North American Communities in Solidarity Chicago, October 21-23, 2005 http://www.chicagoans.net/conference2005/ back to top Making Our Words into Deeds Partnering for Peace: Colombian and US Communities in Solidarity Some 140 people gathered in Chicago October 21-23 to “Partner for Peace” in solidarity between Colombian and US communities, churches and organizations. The conference included participation by some 20 Colombian community leaders and reflected cooperation by the seven organizing groups and 20 other co-sponsors. It aimed to support both current partnerships and the creation of new ones as a basis for long-term change in relations between Colombia and the United States and transformation in our own communities. The ‘encounter of communities’ on October 21, in which existing partners met and reflected on their relationships, was a special highlight for many. The testimony by Afro-Colombian, indigenous and mestizo leaders, the participation by diverse church members, and a poetry reading by Piedad Morales and party on Saturday also helped people to connect in powerful ways. Bernardo Vivas Mosquera, of the Afro-Colombian CAVIDA community in Cacarica, spoke of the importance of symbolism. He said that banners from sister communities in solidarity are a great way to display evidence of the international organizations that support and protect the community. In a workshop on advocacy and accompaniment, Zulia Mena, the first Afro-Colombian woman to be elected to the Colombian Congress, pointed out the importance of support from the Congressional Black Caucus. “It’s important that as allies you help us develop this relationship.” She emphasized that change moves from the center to the periphery, and that Colombia must be at the center of change. Gerardo Cajamarca, a Colombian labor activist who works with the U.S. Steelworkers, said that “it is very important to call your representatives to call for an end to Plan Colombia. But it’s also very important to create study groups to understand what is going on in Colombia.” Several veterans of partnerships in Central America, the United States, and Colombia, spoke to the challenges of working through financial relationships, and how inequalities of power are addressed. “We funnel money through other organizations, we try to get out of the binary relationship,” said Garry Sparks, who is part of a partnership between a Chicago church and a rural Guatemalan community. “University Church is acutely aware of the dangers of dependency, appearing to be ‘Santa Claus,’ of carrying out such projects to assuage our guilt rather than address their needs— On delegations, future possible projects are discussed and previous projects are evaluated, but no money exchanges hands during the delegation. In fact, all monies (except those that are needed to cover immediate expenses) are taken off the table.” “We don’t want to favor the people in the community who simply have made a good connection with us,” noted Martha Pierce, who also participates in a US church-Mayan community partnership. Clark Taylor, invited to the conference for his twenty-plus years of experience working with the Central American Solidarity Movement and specifically with his partnered community of Santa Maria Tezja in Guatemala, reflected on the lessons learned from this established and still growing relationship. He noted that, "It took us awhile to create trust with this community. We always stood back and responded to what they told us their needs were." Sparks also spoke to this kind of listening: “We have learned to never speak first but wait to be asked our opinion. We have learned to not ask “yes” and “no” questions unless we want, often unintentionally, hear a “yes” and thus inadvertently impose our will. We try to experience life on [the community’s] terms rather than bring our life down to them so that, in part, we may better hear them when we are in the U.S.” Asked how his Massachusetts church has maintained their relationship and momentum for nearly 20 years, Clark Taylor talked about shared leadership. “Having a large base with shared responsibility has really contributed to our longevity.” Others spoke to the importance of continuity of personal relationships as well. The shadow over the conference was the arrest by police and subsequent disappearance by paramilitaries on October 15 of Orlando Valencia, an Afro-Colombian leader from the Jiguamiandó community in Chocó, who had been invited to participate in the conference. He had been denied a visa by the US Embassy, and he was accompanied by a member of a small Canadian group when he was taken. Many groups mobilized in response to Orlando’s disappearance. A body found on October 25 was confirmed to be that of Orlando, killed several days before. Amid our sadness, we also mobilized for further action on this crime, including group letters to President Álvaro Uribe and the State Department. Partnering for the Long Haul In one of the final workshops of the Conference, "Putting Down Roots,” Pedro Acosta, a pastor from the Peace Sanctuary Church movement, began by speaking about the fundamental importance of communication. He reminded the participants that, " The same motivation, emotion and spirit that creates the partnership should also influence the communication. There should be a strategic plan of what to get out of the partnership developed by an organization that lays the framework." Ana Maria Murillo of the U’wa Defense Project recounted her experience trying to avigate the solitary feeling of working alone in an office. But when the U’wa community proposed and selected a point person, their relationship completely changed. "Things were just easier," said Ana Maria. "We felt like we had a better connection and more trust just having this one-on-one relationship." Mario Murillo, of the Colombia Media Project, said that "media solidarity combines two movements: the movement for indigenous rights and the reform of media throughout the world." His work focuses on a partnership between the Pacifica Radio network and indigenous community radio stations in Colombia Cauca region. He noted that a gathering of this kind would have been impossible five or ten years ago. A lengthy discussion centered on issues of safety, communication, and ways to continue the education and advocacy in the U.S. in between speaker tours and visits and innovative ways of organizing amongst groups in Colombia. Some of the concrete suggestions included: Planning movie screenings, discussions, dances, dinners, art shows and coffee hours as a great way to continue to nurture the partnership and also finding ways to have Colombians visiting with nearby groups come and speak to your area as well as trying to make connections with Colombians living in the United States. Reinaldo Areiza from the Peace Community of San José spoke about a network of communities in resistance in Colombia called RECORRE. “The idea is to come together to help show the rest of the world the problems in Colombia, because all of these communities are facing similar challenges. Something that came out of this network is a Campesino University, where we teach useful courses on sustainability and resistance. This is a university without walls in many communities such as San Jose, Cauca, Caqueta." This final workshop concluded with hopeful energy for the possibilities to come. Most written evaluations called for future gatherings of this kind. Notes and photographs from conference workshops and plenary sessions are being assembled into a printed and on-line report. A DVD of interviews with Colombian community leaders and U.S. and Colombian partners is also available. back to top