TMP Online

Mark Donne, political officer of the Justice for Columbia campaign, argues that military aid and diplomatic support of the right wing Columbian government should cease immediately.

Scrutiny of UK foreign policy during the Blair era was – with obvious cause – focused on the Middle East and to a lesser extent, Africa. Grass roots social change in Latin America has to a degree moved that continent into British political consciousness. However, our relationship with one South American nation, Colombia, has (not accidentally) avoided serious investigation, despite the efforts of the trade union movement and a concerned group of MP’s.

For more than 40 years Colombia has been suffering from an internal armed conflict between left wing guerrilla group FARC and paramilitary groups “strongly associated” with successive right wing governments, up to and including that of incumbent President Uribe, more of which later. The humanitarian consequences of the conflict have been so severe that Colombia currently has one of the worst human rights records in the world.

The vast majority of human rights abuses, including the assassination of over 4,000 trade unionists in the last 15 years, are attributed to government armed forces and state backed paramilitaries. Indeed, more trade unionists are assassinated in Colombia than in the rest of the world combined. Local councillors and journalists are also common targets of persecution and violence, not to mention poor rural villagers who are frequently attacked and displaced.

According to the most recent report of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in Colombia: “The human rights situation continued to be critical. There was an increase in reports of extrajudicial executions attributed to members of the security forces and other public officials.” The issue for consideration is why - with such appalling human rights standards - the Colombian administration continues to receive full financial and diplomatic support from the UK and US governments.

President Uribe, an Oxford and Havard educated lawyer, has strongly denied direct links with the paramilitaries, although these claims are looking increasing risible. In July this year, Colombia’s pro-Uribe former intelligence chief was arrested and charged with murder and supplying the names of trade unionists and human rights workers to right-wing militias. Many on the alleged target list were murdered.

Mr Noguera was a close ally of Uribe and former head of the Administrative Security Department (DAS). Noguera had first been investigated over the murder of an academic conducting an investigation into the forced displacement of peasants.

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