Organizing Visit by Colombian Conscientious Objector
In April 2012, the Fellowship of Reconciliation will host Colombian conscientious objector Sebastián Patiño, who as a member of the Bogotá based Conscientious Objectors’ Collective Action has been struggling for the right to not participate in Colombia’s decades-old conflict.
We invite you to propose a visit by Sebastián to your area and to organize events for the visit. Just fill out this request form.
This tour will be of limited time, and areas visited will be selected based on the capacity and interest of hosts to put together meaningful events, as part of longer-term work to support conscientious objectors in Colombia and to buid ties between young people in the United States and Colombia who are struggling to resist the militarization of their lives.
Hosts must commit to raise sufficient funds to cover a portion of tour costs (typically $300-$500 for two-day visit), and to organize events that bring Sebastian’s powerful message to significant sectors of your community, including high school students. These may include presentations in community settings, media interviews, and presentations in universities, colleges and high schools. Language interpretation will be necessary for events that include non-Spanish speakers.
Background
Sebastián Patiño, a 19 year old Colombian conscientious objector, for whom violence has not been just part of the media and video games: “My entire life I have witnessed violence, violence through the windows of my house and violence that was projected onto the TV screen. Although I am young and Colombian, I have not only been a simple witness; the armed conflict has also knocked on my door, always with bad news.”
For forty years, the US has been waging a costly and futile War on Drugs. Since 2000, through Plan Colombia, a big portion of that war has been waged in Colombia, exacerbating the four decades internal armed conflict.
In the midst of this, youth from all walks of life have been entangled in a spiral of violence. There is not only a military draft for males over 18 to the National Army, but also forced recruitment by the guerrillas and paramilitaries.
Over the past several years, however, an organized youth movement has emerged to challenge this aspect of the war. The movement’s premises are simple: they want the right to say no to participating in Colombia’s cycles of violence. Among these groups, is ACOOC, Conscientious Objectors’ Collective Action is a Bogotá based group of young people promoting non-violence and freedom of conscience. Sebastian is one of its active members. In Sebastian’s case, it the futility of the war was clear. “This war ‘against drugs and terrorism’ has done nothing more than cover the earth with innocent blood, I was about 13 or 14 years old when I understood that I didn’t want a helmet or boots or to be part of this war in any way at all. “
The Fellowship of Reconciliation (FOR) has worked with ACOOC and other Colombian youth groups to secure the right to object the war on basis of conscience is recognized and to put a stop to illegal raids carried out by the Colombian army as part of the recruitment process, in which youngsters are stopped and if, failing to provide a military ID issued card, are whisked into a truck to find themselves conscripted. This is a source of fear for Sebastian, as well as thousands other young Colombians, I am continually stopped on the streets by the military and being asked for my military service card. These military trucks are designed to inspire constant fear and only take me and other Colombian youth straight to the barracks.
