AN URGENT CALL FOR SOLIDARITY

The Peace Community of San José de Apartadó wishes to declare its rejection of the statements made by President Álvaro Uribe on May 27, 2004 in the town of Apartadó, because we consider that they are neither fair nor in accordance with the reality of what the community has done.

First, the president has accused us of not testifying to the Apartadó district attorney, and that in that way the community leaders obstruct justice by not facilitating the investigations. Such a perception is totally unjust, as we ourselves have been committed to the search for justice and one of our principles is in fact to reject impunity. We want to give a quick summary of the actions we have carried out to bring justice for the actions of death, terror and horror to which we have been submitted since the beginning of the process: the community sought to and gave testimony to the offices of the Inspector General, District Attorney, and People’s Ombudsman, all of them Colombian government’s oversight authorities. After the massacre in 2000, in which they killed six of our leaders, the community received provisional measures by the Interamerican Human Rights Court, at the request of the Interamerican Human Rights Commission of the OAS. At the request of the community and in coordination with the State, a special investigative commission was formed, made up of representatives of the District Attorney, the Inspector General, the National Ombudsman, the Vice-presidency, and as observer the UN Human Rights Office. This commission had the full collaboration of the community, and for its investigations more than 100 testimonies were given. Nevertheless, as a result of the blockade imposed on the community and the killing of more than 20 people by paramilitaries with support from the military in 2002, we decided to not give any more declarations, as we were witnesses of how several of the people who had given testimony had been killed, and despite all the effort of the community, the investigations did not progress at all. At the end of 2002, in a meeting with Vice-President Francisco Santos, we asked for an evaluation of the work of the Investigative Commission, to look at why there has been no justice for the atrocities committed against the civilian population of San José. To this date we have not had a response to our request and for that reason we again proposed the evaluation in a meeting with state officials on February 28, 2004. Also, at the end of 2003, always with the aim to overcome impunity, we filed suit with the Attorney General for crimes against humanity; the majority of the community’s cases of acts against the community were gathered in that suit, but there is as yet no clear response about the suit's status.

In the same spirit, Father Javier Giraldo has submitted six formal petitions, in which he has enumerated the human rights violations which have been committed against the community by members of the security forces.

In that context of constant attacks, we have sought always engagement with the state. For two months there was to have been a meeting with state officials regarding the cautionary measures [issued by the Interamerican Human Rights Commission], in which supposedly the issue of the evaluation commission would be addressed, and we demanded a clear response to the legal action we filed; nevertheless, the vice-presidency cancelled each date and to this date the meeting has not occurred.

We believe that this shows that the inferences made by the president are unfair and that the problem has not been simply that the community doesn’t give testimony. There is a more serious problem: the structure of impunity that rules in our country. But we are also accused of not allowing personnel from the District Attorney or other state agencies to enter the community. We have always said, and we will continue to be true to these principles regardless of the consequences, that we do not accept any armed group (including the security forces) in the places where we live or work; we have always demanded the permanent presence of the ombudsman’s office and the Inspector General, we have had meetings with state agencies, with representatives of the Vice-Presidency, the People’s Ombudsman, Inspector General, District Attorney, Mayor, and municpal ombudsman in April, and such meetings have been scheduled every two months in San José. For that reason we cannot understand nor accept this accusation.

San José is also accused of being a “corridor” for the guerrillas, when we have been victims of all the armed groups. San José is a village of less than 200 meters squared, and since 1997 has had a permanent Army presence around the village, constant military roadblocks between Apartadó and San José – sometimes there have been seven roadblocks in only 12 kilometers (7.5 miles). We state categorically: we are not a corridor for any armed group, much less the guerrillas. We have been accused unfairly by the Army of being a corridor for them because of our total neutrality and for not being with any armed group.

At the same time, international accompaniment has been accused of impeding the entrance of state agencies, particularly the District Attorney’s office, a statement which is totally at odds with reality. The work of these groups has always been as observers of our process, it has been humanitarian, it has been to be with the victims. This is a choice of solidarity that anyone in the world can take on with a community as victimized as ours; they have been witnesses to the attacks we have lived through, but never have they said or done such actions, since they share with us our principles of peace and of not being with any armed group.

It is important to clarify that our choices for life are not decision by some leaders as was implied, but the life and commitment of a whole community that peacefully resists in the midst of war.

We believe that the president should look more in depth at the formal petitions that we have sent, should look at the reality of our process, and he would see that the San José Peace Community’s alternatives are clear and convincing choices for something different from war or any armed group, choices for peace, choices for solidarity. Instead of receiving accusations from the state, we ought to have its respect, the guarantee of our rights. Campesinos should be encouraged toward other experiences in these real searches for peace, of creating a different way. Sadly, we see that we are again stigmatized and attacked, but it will be humanity and history that will really show the truth of the victims and the truth of this process that has always been committed in the struggle against impunity.

We have been told that the leaders can be imprisoned by the DAS [Department of Security Administration] or the police; nevertheless we affirm our principles and we cannot yield to injustice. We will remain firm in what we believe. We ask with urgency for solidarity that our process not be destroyed, that our leader not be imprisoned, that our process be respected. We know that our civilian resistance is not only the product of our community, but of national and international solidarity, and we turn to that in these difficult moments. We know that history and humanity are with the victims on their just path, and with these alternative processes of searching for peace, for justice and not impunity, in which we do not and will not be at the bidding of any armed group.

May 28, 2004

[Translation from Spanish by Fellowship of Reconciliation]

©2004 Fellowship of Reconciliation