Colombia
22.08.02
Urgent Interventions
Colombia: large-scale kidnappings in Bahía Solano and Chigorodó.
Case COL 220802
Kidnappings
The International Secretariat of the OMCT requests your urgent intervention in the following situation in Columbia:
Brief description of the situation:
The International Secretariat of the OMCT has been informed of large-scale kidnappings that took place in events in Bahía Solano (Chocó) and in Chigorodó (Antioquia).
According to information received from the workers’ organisation CUT (Central Unitaria de Trabajadores de Colombia), a member of the OMCT network, a massive kidnapping operation was carried out August on 20th, 2002 at around 10.00 am in the Corregimiento del Valle de Bahía Solano, in the Departamento of Chocó, Zona Pacifica. 27 people were taken, some of whom were workers on a fishing excursion. On this excursion were a total of 80 people made up of workers and retired members of the Cali subsection of the CUT worker’s union “Sindicato de Trabajadores del Municipio de Cali”.
According to the reports, the children present were released and were able to report that the kidnapping was carried out by members of the ELN (Ejército de Liberación Nacional) and that the hostages were taken to an unknown location. Among the victims are: Mr. Flower Enrique Rojas, President of the Cali subsection of the “Sindicato de Trabajadores”, his elderly father Mr. Flower Rojas and other members of the union, Mr. María del Carmen de Rendón; Mr. Jair Rendón; Mr. Antonio Bejarano; Mr. Henry Caicedo; Diego Valencia; Mr. Carlos Salinas; Ms. Beatríz Orozco; Ms. Soledad Fals; Eliécer Ortiz; Mr. Jaime Sánchez Ballen; Mr. Pedro Potosí, Mr. Oscar Iván Hernández; Mr. Gerardo Machado; Mr. Nestor Narváez; and Mr. Libaniel Arciniegas, as well as other friends and members of the workers’ families.
Official sources affirm that other hostages are 5 residents of Medellín, the director of Ensenada de Utría Natural Park, Sr. Efraín Rincón and a boatman identified as Abdul Moreno.
According to the sources, at about midday on August 20th, two hours after being taken hostage, the group was made to board boats and fishing canoes and were taken to a beach known as San Pichi, situated a few kilometres south of where they had been kidnapped. The secretary of the Government of Chocó, Mr. Narvy Yuraqui, stated that after this, all trace was lost of the hostages and that he presumes they are being held in the forest.
A similar event has been reported by reliable sources as having taken place on Monday August 19th, 2002, when 10 people were kidnapped, seemingly by members of the FARC (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia). The persons that were taken hostage were spending a day at beaches on the river Guapá at La Fortuna, 10 kilometres from the urban agglomeration of Chigorodó. The names of the people include: Mr. Carlos Alberto Upegui; Mr. Carlos Vianey ; Mr.Alfonso Vásquez ; Mr. Jairo Flórez ; Mr. Luis Alberto Velásquez ; Mr. Bernardo Antonio Pérez ; Mr. Javier Rodríguez ; Mr. Gonzalo Cardona ; Mr. Elkin Iván Cossio, and another person whose name is as yet unknown.
The kidnappers were reportedly seen fleeing with the hostages towards a mountainous area known as la Serranía de Abibe near the border with the neighbouring department of Córdoba. The same reports add that members of the regular army and of the police attempted to obtain the release of the hostages and that during a confrontation near the site of the kidnapping a soldier belonging to Brigade 17 died.
The International Secretariat of the OMCT condemns these violent events and the persecution of the civil population, the apparent impunity of their perpetrators and the failure on the part of the local, national and governmental authorities to prevent these events.
Action Requested:
Please write to the Colombian authorities urging them to:
i. immediately take all measures necessary to locate the hostages mentioned above and to guarantee their physical and psychological integrity;
ii. order a thorough and impartial investigation into the circumstances of these events and guarantee that those responsible are brought to trial and that the penal, civil and/or administrative sanctions are applied as provided by law;
iii. put into immediate practice the recommendations of international and regional human rights organisations, including those of the High Commission for Human Rights and the Inter-american Commission for Human Rights;
iv. guarantee the respect of human rights and fundamental freedoms throughout the country, in accordance with national laws and international human rights standards.
Addresses:
· S.E. Álvaro Uribe Vélez, Presidente de la República, Cra. 8 n°.7-26, Palacio de Nariño, Santafé de Bogotá. Fax: (+57 1) 566 20 71
· Consejería Presidencial de Derechos Humanos, Calle 7 n°. 6-54 Piso 3, Santafé de Bogotá, D. C. Fax: (+57 1) 337 13 51
· Consejería para la Paz (Alto Comisionado para la Paz), Palacio de Nariño, Carrera 8 No 7-26. Fax: (+57 1) 560 99 46.
· Doctora Martha Lucía Ramírez de Rincón, 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 Fernando Londoño Hoyos, Ministro del Interior y de la Justicia, 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, 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
· Mission Permanente de la Colombie auprès de l’Office de las Nations Unies et des institutions spécialisées a Genève. Chemin du Champ d’Anier 17-19, 1209 Genève. Tel : (+41) 22 798 45 54; (+41) 22 798 4555. E-mail : mission.colombia@ties.itu.int
Please also write to the diplomatic representative of Colombia in your country.
Geneva, 22 August 2002
Kindly inform the OMCT of any action you have undertaken indicating the appeal code in your response.
Kidnappings
The International Secretariat of the OMCT requests your urgent intervention in the following situation in Columbia:
Brief description of the situation:
The International Secretariat of the OMCT has been informed of large-scale kidnappings that took place in events in Bahía Solano (Chocó) and in Chigorodó (Antioquia).
According to information received from the workers’ organisation CUT (Central Unitaria de Trabajadores de Colombia), a member of the OMCT network, a massive kidnapping operation was carried out August on 20th, 2002 at around 10.00 am in the Corregimiento del Valle de Bahía Solano, in the Departamento of Chocó, Zona Pacifica. 27 people were taken, some of whom were workers on a fishing excursion. On this excursion were a total of 80 people made up of workers and retired members of the Cali subsection of the CUT worker’s union “Sindicato de Trabajadores del Municipio de Cali”.
According to the reports, the children present were released and were able to report that the kidnapping was carried out by members of the ELN (Ejército de Liberación Nacional) and that the hostages were taken to an unknown location. Among the victims are: Mr. Flower Enrique Rojas, President of the Cali subsection of the “Sindicato de Trabajadores”, his elderly father Mr. Flower Rojas and other members of the union, Mr. María del Carmen de Rendón; Mr. Jair Rendón; Mr. Antonio Bejarano; Mr. Henry Caicedo; Diego Valencia; Mr. Carlos Salinas; Ms. Beatríz Orozco; Ms. Soledad Fals; Eliécer Ortiz; Mr. Jaime Sánchez Ballen; Mr. Pedro Potosí, Mr. Oscar Iván Hernández; Mr. Gerardo Machado; Mr. Nestor Narváez; and Mr. Libaniel Arciniegas, as well as other friends and members of the workers’ families.
Official sources affirm that other hostages are 5 residents of Medellín, the director of Ensenada de Utría Natural Park, Sr. Efraín Rincón and a boatman identified as Abdul Moreno.
According to the sources, at about midday on August 20th, two hours after being taken hostage, the group was made to board boats and fishing canoes and were taken to a beach known as San Pichi, situated a few kilometres south of where they had been kidnapped. The secretary of the Government of Chocó, Mr. Narvy Yuraqui, stated that after this, all trace was lost of the hostages and that he presumes they are being held in the forest.
A similar event has been reported by reliable sources as having taken place on Monday August 19th, 2002, when 10 people were kidnapped, seemingly by members of the FARC (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia). The persons that were taken hostage were spending a day at beaches on the river Guapá at La Fortuna, 10 kilometres from the urban agglomeration of Chigorodó. The names of the people include: Mr. Carlos Alberto Upegui; Mr. Carlos Vianey ; Mr.Alfonso Vásquez ; Mr. Jairo Flórez ; Mr. Luis Alberto Velásquez ; Mr. Bernardo Antonio Pérez ; Mr. Javier Rodríguez ; Mr. Gonzalo Cardona ; Mr. Elkin Iván Cossio, and another person whose name is as yet unknown.
The kidnappers were reportedly seen fleeing with the hostages towards a mountainous area known as la Serranía de Abibe near the border with the neighbouring department of Córdoba. The same reports add that members of the regular army and of the police attempted to obtain the release of the hostages and that during a confrontation near the site of the kidnapping a soldier belonging to Brigade 17 died.
The International Secretariat of the OMCT condemns these violent events and the persecution of the civil population, the apparent impunity of their perpetrators and the failure on the part of the local, national and governmental authorities to prevent these events.
Action Requested:
Please write to the Colombian authorities urging them to:
i. immediately take all measures necessary to locate the hostages mentioned above and to guarantee their physical and psychological integrity;
ii. order a thorough and impartial investigation into the circumstances of these events and guarantee that those responsible are brought to trial and that the penal, civil and/or administrative sanctions are applied as provided by law;
iii. put into immediate practice the recommendations of international and regional human rights organisations, including those of the High Commission for Human Rights and the Inter-american Commission for Human Rights;
iv. guarantee the respect of human rights and fundamental freedoms throughout the country, in accordance with national laws and international human rights standards.
Addresses:
· S.E. Álvaro Uribe Vélez, Presidente de la República, Cra. 8 n°.7-26, Palacio de Nariño, Santafé de Bogotá. Fax: (+57 1) 566 20 71
· Consejería Presidencial de Derechos Humanos, Calle 7 n°. 6-54 Piso 3, Santafé de Bogotá, D. C. Fax: (+57 1) 337 13 51
· Consejería para la Paz (Alto Comisionado para la Paz), Palacio de Nariño, Carrera 8 No 7-26. Fax: (+57 1) 560 99 46.
· Doctora Martha Lucía Ramírez de Rincón, 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 Fernando Londoño Hoyos, Ministro del Interior y de la Justicia, 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, 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
· Mission Permanente de la Colombie auprès de l’Office de las Nations Unies et des institutions spécialisées a Genève. Chemin du Champ d’Anier 17-19, 1209 Genève. Tel : (+41) 22 798 45 54; (+41) 22 798 4555. E-mail : mission.colombia@ties.itu.int
Please also write to the diplomatic representative of Colombia in your country.
Geneva, 22 August 2002
Kindly inform the OMCT of any action you have undertaken indicating the appeal code in your response.