Colombia
24.05.02
Urgent Interventions
Colombia: arbitrary detention of Mr. Miguel Antonio Rubio and raid of the headquarters of Partido Unión Patriótica (UP)
Case COL 240502
Alleged arbitrary detention / Raid of UP headquarters
The international Secretariat of the OMCT requests your urgent intervention on the following situation in Colombia.
Brief description of the situation
The International Secreteriat of OMCT, has received information from Fundación Comité de Solidaridad con los Presos Políticos (FCSPP) about the alleged arbitrary detention of Mr. Miguel Antonio Rubio, president of the Municipal Council of Mesetas, in the Department of Meta, and of the raid of the headquarters of Partido Unión Patriótica (UP), in Bogota.
According to the information received, Miguel Antonio Rubio, former Mayor belonging to the Unión Patriótica, and current president of the Municipal Council of Mesetas, was arrested on May 19th, 2002, at around 08:00 a.m., at his house, by police officers from Mesetas, under alleged charges of hiring hitmen ("conformación de grupos sicariales y de justicia privada”) in that region.
According to the report, Mr. Miguel Antonio Rubio, was transferred immediately to the city of Villavicencio, where he remained in detention at the Seccional de Policia Judicial (SIJIN). Mr. Miguel Antonio Rubio was allegedly presented before the Prosecutor of the Novena Especializada of Villavicencio.
According to the information received, Mr. Miguel Antonio Rubio is a former member of the Communist Party and founder of Unión Patriótica in the mesetas, and is also well known for his community and social work in the department of meta. It is therefore thought that this case is a “judicial travesty” against residents of the old Zona de Distensión (area of détente), that have been classified as “guerrilla” by the public forces and threatened to death by paramilitary groups.
According to the report, there exists a plan of death and harassment that was expected to take place when the zona de distension was dissolved, and that was denounced during the past sessions of the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights. The aforementioned plan concerned murders of survivors from the Unión Patriótica and the Communist Party (Partido Comunista). The death of William Prieto Velásquez, on March 25th, 2002, in Villavicencio was reportedly part of this plan. Mr. William Prieto Velásquez had worked as a consultant to the mayor of La Uribe until the breaking of the Peace Process with the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (FARC), when he was forced to leave because of the presence of the paramilitary in the military operation that took over La Uribe.
Additionally, according to the information received, on the morning of May 17th, 2002, police units raided the historical national headquarters of the Unión Patriotica political party, located in the Santafé district, and at the same time, the residence of a communist member whose identity is currently unknown, and whose house is located in a humble district south of Bogotá.
The literal transcription of the minutes of the prosecutor concerning the raid on May 17th, 2002 in the house of the communist member follows:
“In the drawer the following papers and documents were found: propaganda for the candidate Lucho Garzón. A paper where it is written database of the organising department of PCC Capital District. This document is seized. A yellow paper whose title is “The Congress that Colombia needs by the way of life”, this page is seized. Two blue covered leaflets where it is written Law 387 July 13th, 1987 and United Nations High Commission for Refugees, are also seized. One blue front covered leaflet from the United Nations to live in peace remains seized. Nine pages are found where it is written República de Colombia Registraduría Nacional del estado Civil May 26th, 2002 elections to vote and blank are also seized.”
According to the reports, the raids took place following orders from the Intelligence Section of the Army battalion of the Presidential Guard, who alleged that in the site arms and explosives were being stored to carry out attacks and sabotage the next presidential elections. However, the aforementioned files were not reportedly found during the raid to the UP: only Marxist and social content literature is alleged to be found.
The International Secretariat of the OMCT is gravely concerned by the persecution of activists belonging to the Unión Patriótica and the Partido Comunista Colombiano and fears that its objective is to threaten the opposition and physically disappear UP-PCC from the political arena. (OMCT reminds that since 1984 over 2000 people belonging to the Unión Patriótica have been killed or disappeared).
Action requested
Please write to the Colombian authorities urging them to:
i. take all necessary measures to guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of Mr. Miguel Antonio Rubio;
ii. order that Miguel Antonio Rubio be released immediately in the absence of valid legal charges or, if such charges exist, bring him before an impartial and competent tribunal and guarantee his procedural rights at all times;
iii. carry out immediately the given recommendations by international and regional human rights organisations , including the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Commission for Human Rights of the United Nations, and the Inter-American Commission for Human Rights;
iv. guarantee the respect of human rights and the fundamental freedoms throughout the country in accordance with national laws and international human rights laws and standards.
Addresses
· S.E. Andrés Pastrana Arango, Presidente de la República, Cra. 8 n°.7-26, Palacio de Nariño, Santafé de Bogotá. Fax: (+57 1) 566 20 71 e-mail : apastra@presidencia.gov.co
· Consejería Presidencial de Derechos Humanos, Calle 7 n°. 6-54 Piso 3, Santafé de Bogotá, D. C. Fax: (+57 1) 337 13 51
· Doctor Gustavo Bell Lemus, Ministro de la Defensa, Avenida El Dorado con Cra. 52 CAN, Santafé de Bogotá. Fax: (+57 1) 222 18 74 ; e-mail : siden@mindefensa.gov.co ; infprotocol@mindefensa.gov.co ; mdn@cable.net.co
· Doctor Armando Estrada Villa, Ministro del Interior, Cra. 8 n°. 8-09 Santa Fe de Bogotá, Santafé de Bogotá. Fax: (+57 1) 286 80 25 ; e-mail: mininterior@myrealbox.com ; minisint@col1.telecom.com.co
· Doctor Edgardo José Maya Villazón, Procurador General de la Nación, Carrera 5 n°. 15-80,Santa Fe de Bogotá.Fax: (+57 1)342 97 23;(+57 1)281 75 31 ; e-mail : reygon@procuraduria.gov.co ; anticorrupcion@presidencia.gov.co
· Doctor Luis Camilo Osorio, Fiscal General de la Nación, Diagonal 22 B n°. 52-01, Santafé de Bogotá. Fax: (+57 1) 570 20 00 ; contacto@fiscalia.gov.co ; denuncie@fiscalia.gov.co
· Doctor Eduardo Cifuentes, Defensor del Pueblo, Defensoría del Pueblo, Calle 55 n°. 10-32 Santa Fe de Bogotá. Fax: (+ 57 1) 640 04 91 e-mail : secretaria_privada@hotmail.com
· General Fernando Tapias Stahelin, Comandante de las Fuerzas Militares, Avenida el Dorado con Cra. 52, Santafé de Bogotá. Fax: (+57 1) 222 29 35 ; e-mail : siden@mindefensa.gov.co ; pilaque@cgm.mil.co
Please write to the embassies of Colombia in your respective countries
Geneva, May 24th, 2002
Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.
Alleged arbitrary detention / Raid of UP headquarters
The international Secretariat of the OMCT requests your urgent intervention on the following situation in Colombia.
Brief description of the situation
The International Secreteriat of OMCT, has received information from Fundación Comité de Solidaridad con los Presos Políticos (FCSPP) about the alleged arbitrary detention of Mr. Miguel Antonio Rubio, president of the Municipal Council of Mesetas, in the Department of Meta, and of the raid of the headquarters of Partido Unión Patriótica (UP), in Bogota.
According to the information received, Miguel Antonio Rubio, former Mayor belonging to the Unión Patriótica, and current president of the Municipal Council of Mesetas, was arrested on May 19th, 2002, at around 08:00 a.m., at his house, by police officers from Mesetas, under alleged charges of hiring hitmen ("conformación de grupos sicariales y de justicia privada”) in that region.
According to the report, Mr. Miguel Antonio Rubio, was transferred immediately to the city of Villavicencio, where he remained in detention at the Seccional de Policia Judicial (SIJIN). Mr. Miguel Antonio Rubio was allegedly presented before the Prosecutor of the Novena Especializada of Villavicencio.
According to the information received, Mr. Miguel Antonio Rubio is a former member of the Communist Party and founder of Unión Patriótica in the mesetas, and is also well known for his community and social work in the department of meta. It is therefore thought that this case is a “judicial travesty” against residents of the old Zona de Distensión (area of détente), that have been classified as “guerrilla” by the public forces and threatened to death by paramilitary groups.
According to the report, there exists a plan of death and harassment that was expected to take place when the zona de distension was dissolved, and that was denounced during the past sessions of the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights. The aforementioned plan concerned murders of survivors from the Unión Patriótica and the Communist Party (Partido Comunista). The death of William Prieto Velásquez, on March 25th, 2002, in Villavicencio was reportedly part of this plan. Mr. William Prieto Velásquez had worked as a consultant to the mayor of La Uribe until the breaking of the Peace Process with the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (FARC), when he was forced to leave because of the presence of the paramilitary in the military operation that took over La Uribe.
Additionally, according to the information received, on the morning of May 17th, 2002, police units raided the historical national headquarters of the Unión Patriotica political party, located in the Santafé district, and at the same time, the residence of a communist member whose identity is currently unknown, and whose house is located in a humble district south of Bogotá.
The literal transcription of the minutes of the prosecutor concerning the raid on May 17th, 2002 in the house of the communist member follows:
“In the drawer the following papers and documents were found: propaganda for the candidate Lucho Garzón. A paper where it is written database of the organising department of PCC Capital District. This document is seized. A yellow paper whose title is “The Congress that Colombia needs by the way of life”, this page is seized. Two blue covered leaflets where it is written Law 387 July 13th, 1987 and United Nations High Commission for Refugees, are also seized. One blue front covered leaflet from the United Nations to live in peace remains seized. Nine pages are found where it is written República de Colombia Registraduría Nacional del estado Civil May 26th, 2002 elections to vote and blank are also seized.”
According to the reports, the raids took place following orders from the Intelligence Section of the Army battalion of the Presidential Guard, who alleged that in the site arms and explosives were being stored to carry out attacks and sabotage the next presidential elections. However, the aforementioned files were not reportedly found during the raid to the UP: only Marxist and social content literature is alleged to be found.
The International Secretariat of the OMCT is gravely concerned by the persecution of activists belonging to the Unión Patriótica and the Partido Comunista Colombiano and fears that its objective is to threaten the opposition and physically disappear UP-PCC from the political arena. (OMCT reminds that since 1984 over 2000 people belonging to the Unión Patriótica have been killed or disappeared).
Action requested
Please write to the Colombian authorities urging them to:
i. take all necessary measures to guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of Mr. Miguel Antonio Rubio;
ii. order that Miguel Antonio Rubio be released immediately in the absence of valid legal charges or, if such charges exist, bring him before an impartial and competent tribunal and guarantee his procedural rights at all times;
iii. carry out immediately the given recommendations by international and regional human rights organisations , including the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Commission for Human Rights of the United Nations, and the Inter-American Commission for Human Rights;
iv. guarantee the respect of human rights and the fundamental freedoms throughout the country in accordance with national laws and international human rights laws and standards.
Addresses
· S.E. Andrés Pastrana Arango, Presidente de la República, Cra. 8 n°.7-26, Palacio de Nariño, Santafé de Bogotá. Fax: (+57 1) 566 20 71 e-mail : apastra@presidencia.gov.co
· Consejería Presidencial de Derechos Humanos, Calle 7 n°. 6-54 Piso 3, Santafé de Bogotá, D. C. Fax: (+57 1) 337 13 51
· Doctor Gustavo Bell Lemus, Ministro de la Defensa, Avenida El Dorado con Cra. 52 CAN, Santafé de Bogotá. Fax: (+57 1) 222 18 74 ; e-mail : siden@mindefensa.gov.co ; infprotocol@mindefensa.gov.co ; mdn@cable.net.co
· Doctor Armando Estrada Villa, Ministro del Interior, Cra. 8 n°. 8-09 Santa Fe de Bogotá, Santafé de Bogotá. Fax: (+57 1) 286 80 25 ; e-mail: mininterior@myrealbox.com ; minisint@col1.telecom.com.co
· Doctor Edgardo José Maya Villazón, Procurador General de la Nación, Carrera 5 n°. 15-80,Santa Fe de Bogotá.Fax: (+57 1)342 97 23;(+57 1)281 75 31 ; e-mail : reygon@procuraduria.gov.co ; anticorrupcion@presidencia.gov.co
· Doctor Luis Camilo Osorio, Fiscal General de la Nación, Diagonal 22 B n°. 52-01, Santafé de Bogotá. Fax: (+57 1) 570 20 00 ; contacto@fiscalia.gov.co ; denuncie@fiscalia.gov.co
· Doctor Eduardo Cifuentes, Defensor del Pueblo, Defensoría del Pueblo, Calle 55 n°. 10-32 Santa Fe de Bogotá. Fax: (+ 57 1) 640 04 91 e-mail : secretaria_privada@hotmail.com
· General Fernando Tapias Stahelin, Comandante de las Fuerzas Militares, Avenida el Dorado con Cra. 52, Santafé de Bogotá. Fax: (+57 1) 222 29 35 ; e-mail : siden@mindefensa.gov.co ; pilaque@cgm.mil.co
Please write to the embassies of Colombia in your respective countries
Geneva, May 24th, 2002
Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.