Violence against Indigenous peoples in Colombia

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Aida Quilcue speaking on Indigenous rights in the context of peace agreements with the Colombian government. Pueblos indigenas y Acuerdos de Paz.jpg
Aida Quilcue speaking on Indigenous rights in the context of peace agreements with the Colombian government.

The Indigenous peoples of Colombia have been subjected to incredible violence in recent decades, ranging from massacres by armed groups to the targeted killings of Indigenous activists and politicians. [1] Mineral, crop and energy resources on native land have been a driving force behind conflicts in Colombia since its founding, and continue to fuel violence against Indigenous peoples into the present day. [2] [3] In the context of the Colombian conflict, the violence against activists is linked to armed groups vying for control in the aftermath of the 2016 peace deal with the Colombian government, leading to a near-complete absence of the state in parts of Colombia. [4] In some areas of Colombia, a motive for killing activists is the belief that they may be working with an opposing armed group. [4] In others, it is because activists support plans to replace cocaine crops with food, and potentially damage the drug economy, or because they support plans to recover land stolen in the conflict. [4]

Contents

In 2021, Genocide Watch issued a genocide emergency for all of Colombia, and stated that Indigenous groups are disproportionately effected by violence in rural areas, displacing them from their ancestral lands, which are then used for coca production to finance the activities of armed groups. [5]

Background

Indigenous peoples in Colombia have long been exploited by settlers since the beginning of the Spanish colonization of the Americas. Mines, land and labor remain key issues today in the conflict between Indigenous peoples, armed groups, and the Colombian government. [2]

History

According to a report by the National Commission of Indigenous Territories (CNTI) in October 2022, a member of Colombia's Indigenous population was killed every four days in 2021. [1] The report was released in the wake of mass violence against Indigenous activists in Colombia. [6] The Institute of Development and Peace Studies (INDEPAZ) is a non-profit organization that documents and lists every Indigenous activist, social leader and environmental defender that has been killed. They reported 21 activist deaths in 2016, 208 in 2017, 282 in 2018, 253 in 2019, [3] 91 in 2020, 338 in 2021, 300 in 2022, and 289 in 2023 as of December 4. [7] At least 611 environmental defenders have been killed since the signing of the peace agreement in 2016; of these, 332 were Indigenous, and 204 of the killings took place in Cauca Department. [8] Cauca Department is at the forefront of violence against Indigenous peoples in Colombia, with 40% of Indigenous activists having been killed in Cauca. Half of these activists were also Nasa. [2] Hundreds of threats towards social leaders have been reported. [2]

Since the FARC's peace deal with the Colombian government in 2016, assassinations of Indigenous social leaders have changed; instead of highly visible national politicians, rural activists are now the primary victims of these killings. Most of these killings are conducted by unknown armed forces, FARC dissident groups and state armed forces. [2] Activists are sometimes assigned an agent from the government's National Protection Unit to guide them along a “protection route” and keep them out of harm's way. It can take up to 3 months to complete a plan for an agent to be assigned. [8]

Many Indigenous peoples have also been displaced, be it through government neglect of human rights or armed conflicts in Colombia; approximately 850,353 people have been forced from their territories. [9]

Groups

Indigenous Guard

The Indigenous Guard (Kiwe Thegnas in the Páez or Nasa Yuwe language) are a group of Indigenous men, women and children in Colombia who volunteer to defend their ancestral lands. [8] The group originated in the violence-ridden Cauca Department [10] and became an organized force in 2001, during a surge in armed conflict. Unarmed, they have confronted various militarized groups in Colombia, such as the FARC, right-wing paramilitaries, and the Colombian army. [8] The Indigenous Guard have stated that their biggest threat comes from the numerous militarized groups of break-off FARC rebels who opposed the 2016 peace deal with the Colombian government. Protecting the environment from illegal gold mining and coca cultivation is now the Guard's main purpose. [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia</span> Colombian guerrilla movement

The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People's Army is a Marxist–Leninist guerrilla group involved in the continuing Colombian conflict starting in 1964. The FARC-EP was officially founded in 1966 from peasant self-defense groups formed from 1948 during the "Violencia" as a peasant force promoting a political line of agrarianism and anti-imperialism. They are known to employ a variety of military tactics, in addition to more unconventional methods, including terrorism.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Liberation Army (Colombia)</span> Revolutionary left-wing group

The National Liberation Army is a Marxist–Leninist guerrilla insurgency group involved in the continuing Colombian conflict, which has existed in Colombia since 1964. The ELN advocates a composite communist ideology of Marxism-Leninism and liberation theology. In 2013, it was estimated that the ELN forces consisted of between 1,380 and 3,000 guerrillas. According to former ELN national directorate member Felipe Torres, one fifth of ELN supporters have taken up arms. The ELN has been classified as a terrorist organization by the governments of Colombia, the United States, Canada, and the European Union.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Colombian conflict</span> Low-intensity asymmetric war in Colombia

The Colombian conflict began on May 27, 1964, and is a low-intensity asymmetric war between the government of Colombia, far-right paramilitary groups and crime syndicates, and far-left guerrilla groups, fighting each other to increase their influence in Colombian territory. Some of the most important international contributors to the Colombian conflict include multinational corporations, the United States, Cuba, and the drug trafficking industry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alfonso Cano</span> Colombian revolutionary (1948–2011)

Guillermo León Sáenz Vargas, more commonly known by his nom de guerre Alfonso Cano, was the commander of the militant group known as Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia. He succeeded founder Manuel Marulanda in March 2008 and commanded the Marxist rebel group until being killed in action by the Colombian Army.

The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC–EP) is a Marxist–Leninist revolutionary guerrilla organization based in Colombia, which is involved in the ongoing Colombian armed conflict.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indigenous peoples in Colombia</span> Ethnic groups that have inhabited Colombia before European colonization

Indigenous peoples of Colombia are the ethnic groups who have inhabited Colombia since before the Spanish colonization of Colombia, in the early 16th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Afro-Colombians</span> Colombian people of African descent

Afro-Colombians or African-Colombians are Colombians of full or partial sub-Saharan African descent.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Valle del Cauca Deputies hostage crisis</span>

The Valle del Cauca Deputies hostage crisis refers to the kidnapping of 12 Deputies of the Assembly of Valle del Cauca, Colombia, on April 12, 2002 by members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) to pressure a prisoner exchange between them and the government and to negotiate the demilitarization of the municipalities of Florida and Pradera to initiate peace dialogues.

Guerrilla movements in Colombia refers to the origins, development and actions of guerrilla movements in the Republic of Colombia. In the context of the ongoing Colombian conflict, the term 'guerrilla' is used to refer to left-wing movements, as opposed to right-wing paramilitaries.

Colombia has a high crime rate due to being a center for the cultivation and trafficking of cocaine. The Colombian conflict began in the mid-1960s and is a low-intensity conflict between Colombian governments, paramilitary groups, crime syndicates, and left-wing guerrillas such as the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), and the National Liberation Army (ELN), fighting each other to increase their influence in Colombian territory. Two of the most important international actors that have contributed to the Colombian conflict are multinational companies and the United States.

On 20 July 2013, two clashes occurred in Colombia between government forces and Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) guerrillas. Nineteen soldiers were killed in the deadliest day since peace talks began in November 2012. The conflict came one day after a FARC-EP officer Alejandra had detained with a chain around the neck a vacationing U.S. Army Combat Engineer (12B) veteran, Kevin Scott Sutay including for his 27th birthday in the jungle on October 13 to try and further anger him intentionally.

Colombia has been in the throes of civil unrest for over half a century. Between 1964 and now, 3 million persons have been displaced and about 220,000 have died, 4 out of 5 deaths were non-combatant civilians. Between left and right-winged armed forces, paramilitary and/or guerrilla, and an often corrupt government, it has been difficult for Colombia to set up any kind of truth or reconciliation commission. That is why the first on the scene, so to speak, were representatives of the UN. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights has been present in Colombia since 1997. Since 2006 though, there has been another international movement turning its attention to Colombia; namely the International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ). The works of both of these institutions have led to a few semi-official national committees to oversee truth seeking missions in the hopes of eventually achieving reparation. In 2012, the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) began their fourth attempt to negotiate an end to the fighting. Peace talks between the Colombian government of Juan Manuel Santos and the FARC, the main guerrilla force in the country, are currently underway in Havana, Cuba. The main issues are land redistribution, integration of the FARC into the political arena and an end to the powerful cocaine cartels. Though past attempts at peace talks have failed, negotiators in Havana, Cuba have gotten significantly further than ever before. Experts agree that it is not unreasonable to expect an accord by the end of 2014. In the words of President Santos: "Only in a Colombia without fear and with truth can we begin to turn the page."

The Colombian peace process is the peace process between the Colombian government of President Juan Manuel Santos and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC–EP) to bring an end to the Colombian conflict, which eventually led to the Peace Agreements between the Colombian Government of Juan Manuel Santos and FARC-EP. Negotiations began in September 2012, and mainly took place in Havana, Cuba. Negotiators announced a final agreement to end the conflict and build a lasting peace on August 24, 2016. However, a referendum to ratify the deal on October 2, 2016 was unsuccessful after 50.2% of voters voted against the agreement with 49.8% voting in favor. Afterward, the Colombian government and the FARC signed a revised peace deal on November 24 and sent it to Congress for ratification instead of conducting a second referendum. Both houses of Congress ratified the revised peace agreement on November 29–30, 2016, thus marking an end to the conflict.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Catatumbo campaign</span> War between militia groups in Colombias Catatumbo region over drug trade

The Catatumbo campaign has been an ongoing period of strategic violence between militia faction groups in the Catatumbo region of Colombia and Venezuela since January 2018. It is an extension of the War on drugs and developed after the Colombian peace process of 2016. The existence of the war was officially announced in August 2019 after a Human Rights Watch (HRW) investigation. Colombian media reports that the war has directly affected an estimated 145,000 people, with the HRW estimating this at 300,000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Land defender</span> Type of activist

A land defender, land protector, or environmental defender is an activist who works to protect ecosystems and the human right to a safe, healthy environment. Often, defenders are members of Indigenous communities who are protecting property rights of ancestral lands in the face of expropriation, pollution, depletion, or destruction.

Cristina Bautista Taquinas (1977–2019) was a Colombian activist, community leader of the Paez/Nasa people of Colombia, and social worker. She dedicated her life to defending indigenous peoples' lands, and fighting for indigenous women's rights.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Apure clashes (2021–2022)</span>

The 2021 Apure clashes started on 21 March 2021 in the south of the Páez Municipality, in the Apure state in Venezuela, specifically in La Victoria, a location bordering with Colombia, between guerrilla groups identified as Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC-EP) dissidents and the Venezuelan government led by Nicolás Maduro.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Colombian displacement crisis</span>

Colombia currently has one of the highest populations of internally displaced people (IDPS), at a total amount of over 6.8 million. The majority of IDPS have been displaced due to conflict and violence while others have been displaced due to climate change. Primary contributors to violence include political violence and civil war as well as gang violence. Despite a 2016 peace agreement, political dissident groups have persisted in Colombia, contributing to violence rate similar to those prior to the peace agreement. The Venezuelan refugee crisis has contributed to economic strains and aid requirements in Colombia. Colombia has received aid from organizations like the UNHCR or USAID to help manage humanitarian needs.

References

  1. 1 2 Alexander, Inigo. "Colombia's Indigenous population faces scourge of violence". aljazeera.com. Retrieved 12 December 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Ruette-Orihuela, Krisna; Gough, Katherine; Vélez-Torres, Irene; Terreros, Claudia (2023). "Necropolitics, peacebuilding and racialized violence: The elimination of indigenous leaders in Colombia". Political Geography. 105. doi: 10.1016/j.polgeo.2023.102934 . Retrieved 12 December 2023.
  3. 1 2 "The end of the illusion for Indigenous Peoples in Colombia". iwgia.org. Retrieved 13 December 2023.
  4. 1 2 3 "Colombians call for end to impunity as activist killings continue". aljazeera.com. Retrieved 13 December 2023.
  5. ↑ "Genocide Emergency: Colombia". Genocide Watch. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  6. ↑ "Colombia human rights update October 2022". justiceforcolombia.org. November 2022. Retrieved 12 December 2023.
  7. ↑ "Masacres en Colombia durante el 2020, 2021, 2022 y 2023". indepaz.org. Retrieved 13 December 2023.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 Grattan, Steven. "Indigenous activists' deaths highlight surging Colombia conflict". aljazeera.com. Retrieved 12 December 2023.
  9. ↑ "Indigenous Peoples at risk of extinction in Colombia". iwgia.org. Retrieved 13 December 2023.
  10. ↑ "Colombia Begins 2022 with Alarming Violence". wola.org. 31 January 2022. Retrieved 12 December 2023.
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