AI Index: AMR 01/02/00

On the front Line

Regional Action Network on Human Rights Defenders

Vol. 4 Nº 2 February - July 2000

This bulletin is dedicated to the memory of Jesús Ramiro Zapata Hoyos

Colombian government fails to prevent killing of yet another human rights defender

Jesús Ramiro Zapata Hoyos ©El Colombiano newspaper

Jesús Ramiro Zapata Hoyos, a human rights defender of theComité de Derechos Humanos del Nordeste Antioqueño, Human Rights Committee of Northeast Antioquia, was killed on 3 May 2000 in Segovia, Antioquia department, Colombia.

Jesús Ramiro was the last surviving member of the Comité de Derechos Humanos de Segovia, Segovia Human Rights Committee, one of the non-governmental human rights organizations that have been the target of a systematic campaign of persecution by the Colombian military and their paramilitary allies in the rural region of Northeast Antioquia.

Jesús Ramiro's work was fundamental in bringing to light the gross violations of human rights committed in the region by paramilitary forces often acting with the compliance of the Armed Forces and in pressuring to bring those responsible to justice. A paramilitary incursion into Segovia on 22 April 1996 left 15 people dead and two 'disappeared'. As a result of pressure by the Segovia Human Rights Committee the atrocities have been investigated and Colombian Army captain, Rodrigo CaZas Forero, has been convicted of direct participation in the events. In Colombia, where impunity is almost always guaranteed for military personnel involved in human rights violations, this indicates a significant achievement.

In February 1998, following more than four years of persistent threats, spurious criminal charges and arbitrary detentions the Inter-American Human Rights Commission (IAHCR) instructed the Colombian government to take precautionary measures to protect Jesús Ramiro. Tragically, the Colombian authorities once again failed to do this. Had the Colombian government effectively implemented the IAHCR request the killing of Jesús Ramiro, like that of other human rights defenders such as Josué Giraldo, could have been prevented.

With the killing Jesús Ramiro Zapata Hoyos, Colombia loses yet another courageous individual who was prepared to put his life at risk for the defence and promotion human rights.

Viviana Díaz is president of the Agrupación de Familiares de los Detenidos Desaparecidos, Association of Relatives of the Detained Disappeared of Chile. In April 2000 she spoke to Amnesty International about her 23 year struggle to discover the truth about the 'disappearance' of her father and the effects, both positive and negative, that the detention of Augusto Pinochet has had on the Agrupación.

CHILE:''This is about much more than just looking for someone''

''Pinochet's detention was, for us, the first big act of justice. It signifies world recognition of what Pinochet did to our country. The world's moral condemnation of Pinochet also represents an act of reparation for the relatives of the victims, and for all those who, in some way, are fighting against impunity. It also means the end of the ''untouchables'' in Chile: those who placed themselves above justice, who thought no one would ever hold them to account for what happened, are finished. Today, all those people of a lower rank than Pinochet who violated human rights, are saying ''if they can detain the Captain General, then it's no longer so easy. I can no longer be certain that they will not prosecute me.''

''Our relatives did not commit any crime, it is only because they thought differently that today they are 'detained-disappeared'. It took us a long time to get their 'disappearance' recognised, with the detention of Pinochet it is evident even to those who denied it in the past. Those who in the past spoke of the so-called 'disappeared', today say the problem is real and it must be resolved. But they try to resolve it by telling us that the 'disappeared' were killed. And that since they are dead, it is no longer a kidnapping, because the crime of kidnapping is an ongoing crime that continues to be committed until the victim is found, alive or dead. And since they are dead then perhaps the 1978 Amnesty Law applies. What they want is to end this drama, which has affected the whole country, without justice.

Viviana Díaz ©AI

''Many people used to say to us ''this is a dictatorship, what sense is there in going to the law courts?'' We always replied, ''it doesn't matter, we need to leave a record.'' We never imagined the search would go on for so long.

''When I started looking for my father, in 1976, 32 months into the military dictatorship, I was so naive that I thought I would be able to make them acknowledge my father's detention and put him on trial. I thought I would see him in prison. I wasn't prepared to never see him again.

''The Agrupación de Familiares de los Desaparecidos Detenidoshas been struggling for justice for so many years. The physical and mental cost has been enormous. We have knocked on thousands of doors, and at each one they have answered, ''No, it's not true. He's not here. You are imagining things. These things didn't happen in Chile.'' We have shared half our lives with the Agrupación, something which I haven't done even with my real family, because as with many other families in Chile, they became afraid and withdrew. In my 23 years in the AgrupaciónI have come to know the lives of almost all the detained-disappeared people, and I can see that these people had dreams, ideals and hopes. No one had the right to kill them. These people cannot be forgotten and erased from the face of the earth without anybody being held responsible.

''Last year, when Sola Sierra (former president of the Agrupación) unexpectedly died it was a terrible blow for us. She joined the Agrupaciónin May 1976 and her husband was 'disappeared' the following December. We got to know each other, and we developed not only a work relationship but also a friendship by the end she was part of my family. ''Before Pinochet's detention, we would not be interviewed in the media. To make the headlines, we would have had to go out on the streets and get ourselves arrested. For 10 years we weren't invited to appear on a single television programme. I'm not saying that we are invited to that many now, but we have received some invitations. As a result of the world-wide commotion about Pinochet's detention, the Chilean media was forced to open up. We also became sources of opinion about the proceedings in Spain and England. In Chile, the Agrupaciónbecame a respected reference. We were able to hold a huge solidarity concert in March 2000 in the National Stadium in Santiago which more than 60,000 people attended. This shows that the people have an understanding of our struggle.

Members of the Agrupación in 1987 ©AI

''We have won respect and credibility in Chile because of the work we have done. For example, when the new government took office in March 2000, representatives arrived from all over the world, and came to talk to us. On previous occasions we had to request meetings, but this time they wanted to speak to us. We have also made progress at a national level. Right-wing deputies and senators have publically acknowledged that the problem of the detained-disappeared is a real and tragic problem. This is progress. However they are always looking for solutions that don't involve them being judged. For them the solution is for the present government to pass a 'full stop law' (ley de punto final), to turn the page and that will be the end of it.

''During the dictatorship we received death threats from various groups. After the dictatorship, for many years we didn't receive any threats. It was only when the Minister opened the investigation into Colonia DignidadColonia Dignidadwas a centre of detention and torture of political prisoners during the dictatoship of Augusto Pinochet. that Sola Sierra, another colleague called Mariana Guzman, and myself received new threats. They told us over the phone that we didn't have much time left, that they were going to kill us. So we filed a recurso de protección (official request for protection), informed the media, and the threats stopped.

''With the detention of Pinochet, the telephone threats started again. Then lots of little bits of paper appeared in the garden of my house. At first I was going to sweep them up and throw them in the rubbish. Each one said things like ''before the cock crows, you won't be here anymore. You're going to die. You have little time left. You're time has run out.''

''It wasn't only the Agrupaciónthat was threatened at this time, but also the members of Corporación de Promoción y Defensa de los Derechos del Pueblo (Codepu), Corporation for the Promotion and Defence of the Rights of the People, and several lawyers. Everyone who was involved in some way with the Pinochet case experienced these threats. We had a meeting with the Vice-Secretary of the Interior, and they offered us protection.

''In my case protection measures were adopted, and they gave me a plain clothes policeman to accompany me for a month. But this police force didn't have any cars, so the Agrupaciónhad to hire a car to pick me up from my house. In the end, this accompaniment became too expensive for theAgrupación.

''I find it outrageous that, 10 years into the transition to democracy, these threats still go on, and if the government makes no effort to investigate such intimidation, then what country are we living in? Personally it annoyed me that I had to go everywhere with a policeman, that I had to be careful of where I went and what I did. For me, this brought about another dilemma which I had never felt before.

''Later, in December 1999, they sent me a Christmas card which said they were going to ''volar los sesos'' (blow our brains out) to stop us carrying on our work. We gave a press conference, because we've always said that we wouldn't be intimidated by these threats. I think that living in a dictatorship for 17 years helped us to overcome the fear and terror. They just wanted the Agrupaciónto reduce its demands. But we have always said that we are prepared to give our lives if necessary and if anything happens to Mireya Garcia (the General Secretary of the Agrupación) or to me, there are other relatives who will continue our work. Nothing will intimidate us.

''I think the fact that we had so much international support lead other organizations in our country to support us as well. This has created a very different situation and we haven't had any problems recently, and happily neither have the other NGOs. Thanks to this I'm not worried.''

JAMAICA: Human rights defenders threatened and discredited

Jamaicans for Justice, a human rights organization working to bring to justice those responsible for security force brutality, has recently suffered a series of threats and incidents of harassment.

Following the killing of two policemen in separate incidents in April 2000, human rights defenders with Jamaicans for Justicereceived threatening phone calls at the organization's offices in Kingston, Jamaica.

In an article published in the Jamaican national newspaper, Sunday Observer, on 30 April 2000 the Minister for National Security, K.D Knight, and the Reverend Irving Townsend questioned the sincerity of those defending human rights, claiming they care little for police officers killed in the line of duty and labelling them 'human rights wimps'.

The comments implied that the police cannot protect themselves while respecting the human rights of others and inferred that those who seek to hold the police to universal standards of human rights are supporting the activity of criminals.

Further concern was generated when the Police Federation labelled the human rights group as "suspicious" and stated that the Federation will monitor the group's actions closely.

Jamaicans for Justice,founded in August 1999, is one of very few non-governmental organizations working to defend and promote human rights in Jamaica. They are working to bring to justice those responsible for such violations as that of Michael Gayle, a man suffering from mental health problems who, on 21 August 1999, approached a security barrier established by police and army officers in Kingston. Minutes later Gayle had been beaten to such an extent that he died two days later.

The organization has also been working on the critical situation in Jamaica's prisons. In attacks beginning on 21 May 2000 and apparently lasting several days soldiers and prison wardens reportedly beat 300 inmates of St Catherine's District Prison, Spanish Town with batons, rifles, baseball bats, irons and electric wire. At least two inmates are alleged to have been shot.

Expressing their thanks for the support they received from the international community at the time of the harassment, Jamaicans for Justicesaid, ''We feel the comments were the beginning of an orchestrated campaign aimed at tarnishing our image and credibility so as to limit support for our activities which we feel is growing. It appears to have back-fired with a significant proportion of the population. It is a great feeling to be part of a growing body of world citizenry who care about fundamental rights and freedoms and who are willing to go to bat in defence of them, and of other groups who work in that arena. Thanks for the support''

UN establishes Special Representative on Human Rights Defenders

At its 56th session in April 2000 the United Nations Commission on Human Rights requested the creation of a Special Representative on human rights defenders. The mandate of this Special Representative, which will last for a period of three years, will be to seek, receive, examine and respond to information on the situation and the rights of human rights defenders in all parts of the world.

The Special Representative would also establish cooperation and dialogue with governments and other interested actors on the effective implementation of the UN Declaration on Defenders (Declaration on the Right and Responsibility of Individuals, Groups and Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally Recognized Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms) adopted by the UN General Assembly on 9 December 1998 and recommend strategies to better protect human rights defenders.

The post of Special Representative potentially has a higher profile than the similar one of Special Rapporteur and it is a welcome addition to the mechanisms already in place which oblige governments to protect human rights defenders. The mandate has been approved by the UN Economic and Social Council in June 2000 and it is hoped that the person appointed will have access to the necessary resources to fully carry out the mandate, in particular in countries where human rights defenders face imminent danger.

3156 It is expected that the person appointed to the post of Special Representative on human rights defenders will be named in the next few months.

This increasing international concern for the security of human rights defenders was mirrored in the inter-American system during the General Assembly of the Organization of American States (OAS) which was held in Windsor, Canada in May 2000.

In the new resolution Human Rights Defenders in the Americas: Support for the individuals, groups and organizations of civil society working to promote and protect human rights in the Americas (AG/RES. 1711 (XXX-O/00)) the OAS reiterated the support expressed in last years resolution for the work carried out by human rights defenders. It also urged its member states to intensify efforts to adopt the necessary measures to guarantee the life and freedom of expression of human rights defenders and instructed the Permanent Council to present a report on compliance with the resolution.

(From left to right) Frei Henri, Ana de Sousa Pinto, Airton dos Reis and Anilson Russi of the Commisão Pastoral da Terra (CPT) in Xinguara ©AI

APPEALS CASES

BRAZIL: Threats against human rights defenders over land issues

Members of theCommisão Pastoral da Terra (CPT), Pastoral Land Commission, in Xinguara, in the south of Pará State are believed to be at grave risk of retaliation as a result of their work to bring to justice those responsible for the killing of land activists in the region.

This area has long been the focal point for the killings of land activists by local landowners, which go unpunished for many years. The CPT has worked tirelessly against these killings, and for the defence of land activists. Their work has brought them into conflict with landowners and their supporters in positions of authority.

One of the organization's lawyers, Frei (Brother) Henri de Rosiers, has been named on a ''death list'' drawn up by a death squad believed to operate with the acquiescence of the police. There is also increased concern for the safety of other CPT members Anilson Russi, Ana de Sousa Pinto and Airton dos Reis Perreira.

Brother Henri was the prosecution lawyer in the trial of a powerful local landowner, accused of ordering the killing of land activist Expedito Ribeiro de Souza, president of the Sindicato de Trabalhadores Rurais, Union of Rural Workers, who was murdered on 2 February 1991 in Rio Maria, Pará. On 6 June the landowner, Jeronimo Alves de Amorim, was finally sentenced to 19 and a half years for the crime. This is the first time that a landowner has faced trial, let alone been convicted, and it stands as a testament to the long and hard work of human rights activists such as the members of the CPT, the victims and their relatives.

RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send telegrams/telexes/ faxes/letters in Portuguese or your own language

• calling for an immediate investigation into the alleged ''death-list'' naming Frei Henri de Rosiers and other people in Xinguara;

• expressing concern at apparent death squad activity in the south of Pará and calling for a full investigation;

• urging the Brazilian government to adhere to its obligations regarding human rights defenders, as laid out in the UN Declaration on the Right and Responsibility of Individuals, Groups and Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally Recognised Human Rights and Fundamental Freedomsadopted on 9 December 1998, and the Organization of American StatesHuman Rights Defenders in the Americasresolution adopted on 7 June 1999 [AG/RES. 1671 (XXIX-O/99)].

APPEALS TO:

Governor Pará State

Exmo. Sr. Governador do Estado do Pará

Sr. Almir José de Oliveira Gabriel

Palácio dos Despachos

Rod.Montenegro KM9,66823-010, Belém - PA, Brazil

Fax: + 55 91 248 0133

Salutation:Vossa Excelência/Your Excellency

Minister of Justice

Exmo. Sr. Ministro da Justiça do Brasil, Dr. José Gregori

Ministério da Justiça

Esplanada dos Ministérios,

Bloco 23, CEP 70064-900, Brasília- DF, Brazil

Fax: + 55 61 224 2448/322 6817

Salutation: Vossa Excelência/Your Excellency

COPIES TO:

Pastoral Land Commission

Commissão Pastoral da Terra

Rua Pau Brasil 40, Caixa Postal 57

Xinguara, 68555-000, Pará, Brazil

Members of the Organización Femenina Popular (OFP) in Barrancabermeja, Santander, Colombia ©AI

COLOMBIA: Women's human rights organization at risk from paramilitaries

TheOrganización Femenina Popular (OFP)is a grass-roots organization which works with women, young people and displaced families in the Magdalena Medio region of Colombia where the armed conflict is played out with increasing brutality and human rights violations are widespread. The women promote human rights awareness, provide humanitarian assistance and run cultural training courses with the aim of presenting alternatives to these vulnerable sectors of society who are under great pressure from violent armed groups. The organization has women's centres in several outlying villages as well as in the town of Barrancabermeja.

This work has recently lead them to be threatened by army-backed paramilitary groups who are increasingly active in the Magdalena Medio region. The Colombian army are due to withdraw from the region in preparation for peace negotiations under an agreement between the Colombian government and the armed opposition group Ejército de Liberación Nacional (ELN), the National Liberation Army. The paramilitaries oppose such a move since this will mean their loss of control in the region and for some months they have reportedly been forcing local people to take part in mass 'protests' against the withdrawal of the army.

On 22 May a group of men, who identified themselves as paramilitaries, asked to borrow cooking equipment from theOFP in Puerto Wilches, Santander for use on one of these 'protests'. The women refused, and the men returned after half an hour threatening that ''mañana a las 8 de la mañana venimos a llevar lo que necesitamos porque nosotros mandamos en Puerto Wilches. Si no lo entrega se lo cobramos a la coordinadora'' (''tomorrow at 8am we will come to collect what we need, because we give the orders in Puerto Wilches. If you don't hand it over, your leader (Flor Caña) will pay for it.'

The following are extracts from two communiques issued by the Organización Femenina Popular (OFP) on 22 and 23 May 2000

“Women’s voices.

This incident occurs in the context of ongoing pressure over several months by these men towards the OFP, both in Puerto Wilches and in San Pablo (Bolívar), who are trying to force us to participate in their meetings and marches. Such action undermines our right to independence from the armed groups, given that the OFP is a completely civilian and autonomous organization. (...) As women, the creators of life even in the midst of war, we are increasingly conscious of our legitimate right to take no part in the armed conflict and to maintain complete independence towards the armed actors. We understand this (latest incident) as a threat not only to Flor Cañas, but also to all the women who make up the OFP in the region(...).

Women do not give birth or create life for the war.”

Organización Femenina Popular (OFP)

The OFP immediately lodged an official complaint with the authorities. The following day they received a warning from the paramilitaries to withdraw the complaint or ''take the consequences''. (''que se levantara la denuncia que se colocó ante las autoridades competentes del municipio...aténganse a las consecuencias'').

RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send telegrams/ telexes/faxes/letters in Spanish or your own language:

• urging the Colombian authorities to implement the precautionary measures recently recommended for the Organización Femenina Popular by the Inter-American Human Rights Commission and to take urgent and appropriate measures to guarantee the safety of the organization's members and to enable them to continue their legitimate work for the defence and promotion of human rights;

• urging the Colombian government to adhere to its obligations regarding human rights defenders, as laid out in the UN Declaration on the Right and Responsibility of Individuals, Groups and Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally Recognised Human Rights and Fundamental Freedomsadopted on 9 December 1998, the Organization of American States Human Rights Defenders in the Americasresolution adopted on 7 June 1999 [AG/RES. 1671 (XXIX-O/99)] and in line with repeated recommendations made by the UN to the Colombian government to take measures to guarantee the safety of human rights defenders.

APPEALS TO:

President of the Republic

Señor Presidente Andrés Pastrana

Presidente de la República,

Palacio de Nariño,

Carrera 8 No.7-26,

Bogotá, COLOMBIA

Fax:+57 1 286 7434/287 7939/284 2186/337 1351

Salutation:Excmo. Sr Presidente

Commander of the 5th Brigade of the Colombian Armed Forces

General Martín Orlando Carreño

Calle 14, Carrera 33

Bucaramanga, Santander, Colombia

Fax:+ 57 76 455051 / 76 351493

Salutation: Sr. General

COPIES TO:

Organización Femenina Popular

Cra22 No 52–36,

Barrancabermeja, Santander, Colombia

PERU: False charges against human rights defender

On 20 March 2000 a landowner filed charges against Martha Cueva Muñoz, legal adviser of the Comité Vicarial de Derechos Humanos del Vicariato Apostólico de Pucallpa, Human Rights Committee of the Apostolic Vicarage of Pucallpa,under Peru's wide-ranging anti-terrorist legislation. People facing such charges are swiftly arrested, and are often tortured in detention. Amnesty International believes these charges are unfounded, and would consider Martha Cueva Muñoz a prisoner of conscience if she were arrested.

In December 1998 10 families living on land claimed by a sawmill owner in Ucayali Department in eastern Peru asked Martha Cueva Muñoz to intervene to stop them being evicted. When she arrived, police attempting to evict the families were being attacked with stones and bottles, and were using teargas. One sawmill worker had apparently been killed. A brush fire was burning, and both the sawmill owner and the families asked Martha Cueva Muñoz to act as a mediator so that firemen could get the fire under control and the two sides could negotiate. No agreement was reached, and the 10 families were eventually evicted.

The owner of the sawmill company filed charges against Martha Cueva, under Peru's 1992 Anti-Terrorism legislation, as she had been present and acted as a mediator during the December 1998 incident.

The Provincial Prosecutor in charge of the case ruled on 4 May that there was no evidence to support the charges against Martha Cueva, and ordered the case closed. However, the State Prosecutor has filed a complaint against this ruling. The Superior Prosecutor of Ucayali department will decide in due course whether the complaint against the provincial prosecutor's decision should stand, and whether Martha Cueva should face charges.

RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send telegrams/ telexes/faxes/letters in Spanish or your own language:

• expressing serious concern that human rights activist Martha Cueva Muñoz could be falsely charged with terrorism-related offences on account of her human rights activities;

• urging the authorities to ensure that the charges against Martha Cueva are dropped, in accordance with the provincial prosecutor's ruling of 4 May 2000, and that she is allowed to exercise her right to defend human rights in accordance with the principles of the United Nations Declaration on the Right and Responsibility of Individuals, Groups and Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally Recognized Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, of 9 December 1998.

APPEALS TO:

Justice Minister

Señor Alberto Bustamante Belaúnde

Ministro de Justicia,

Ministerio de Justicia,

Scipión Llona 350,

Miraflores, Lima 18, PERU

Fax: + 511 422 3577

Salutation: Dear Minister/ Sr.Ministro

Attorney General

Dr. Blanca Nélida Colán

Fiscal de la Nación,

Fiscalía de la Nación

Av. Abancay, cuadra 5 s/n,

Lima 1, PERU

Fax: + 511 426 4620/5011/5010

Salutation: Dear Attorney General/Sra. Fiscal de la Nación

COPIES TO:

Human rights organization

Coordinadora Nacional de Derechos Humanos, CNDDHH

Jr. Túpac Amaru 2467, Lince, Lima 14, Peru

NOTICE BOARD

MEXICO: A tribute to Doña Rosario Ibarra

The following are excerpts from a speech made, on12 May 2000, by Michael Chamberlain Ruiz of the Red Nacional de Organismos Civiles de Derechos Humanos ''Todos los derechos para todos'', National Network of Civil Human Rights Organisms ''All rights for all'', in homage to Rosario Ibarra, who has campaigned, for more than 25 years, for the truth regarding the disappearance of her son.

'' (...)Doña Rosario and the mothers of the 'disappeared', have become a living recrimination, a shout that is impossible to silence, a stubborn hope which has given rise to many others, ceaselessly dreaming of a better Mexico, of a Mexico which will be a state based on memory, with a profound respect for human rights and a profound love for all its children, especially the smallest, who are the most vulnerable to violations of their fundamental rights.

''We speak out against the 25 years since the government's 'disappearance' of Doña Rosario's son (...), which are 25 years of continuing violation. While the 'disappeared' are not found, the violation endures and each successive government is responsible for this until they do appear. This is why the government tries to insist through the Attorney General, the Foreign Ministry, the CNDH (National Human Rights Commission), etc. that the 'disappeared' are dead or that they disappeared of their own free will. This act of denial is part of the terror of forced disappearances and the worst punishment is that society also forgets and gives them up for dead or 'falsely disappeared'. For the sake of the mothers of the disappeared, for our own children, we can not ignore the right to truth and hope, we can not exonerate the government of its responsibility, nor the perpetrators of their punishment.

Rosario Ibarra ©AI

''These 25 years proclaim that, if necessary, there will be another 25 years of struggle for the respect for life. Much remains to be done to restore the rights of the victims and their families, and to guarantee all society and every child of this land, that these atrocities will never be repeated.

''It is unacceptable, that after 25 years there is still no law that recognises 'disappearance' as a serious crime against humanity. It is unacceptable that after 25 years, the state has not admitted responsibility for human rights violations committed by all its agents, and that there is no legislation for the reparation of this damage.

''It is incredible that after all the atrocities we have suffered at the hands of the military during the 1970s and those we are witnessing now, that the system of military justice has not been abolished, so that military personnel can be tried by civilians, not for issues of military discipline, but for crimes as serious as 'disappearance', torture and murder. (...)

''We have immediate obligations to society, to the victims and their relatives, to the mothers of the disappeared and to Doña Rosario. Today, with the same purpose, the same urgency and the same pressing need, we demand: They took them alive, we want them back alive!''

COLOMBIA: Protection of human rights defenders: One step forward, three steps back

In May 2000 Amnesty International published a new report 'Colombia. Protection of human rights defenders: One step forward, three steps back' [AMR 23/22/00] which studies the situation of human rights defenders in Colombia. The report examines some of the shortfalls of measures taken to date by the Colombian authorities to protect human rights defenders. In particular, it examines the issue of impunity for human rights violations against members of human rights organizations, showing how some killings may have been averted if appropriate steps had been taken at the time. It also shows how the lack of an integrated approach by the Colombian authorities on the question of protection for human rights defenders negatively impacts on the safety of those defenders who continue to work for the promotion of human rights in the face of extremely adverse and precarious conditions.

For copies of this report in Spanish, French or English please contact the Human Rights Defenders Program (Americas) at the address at the end of this bulletin.

This publication is produced by the Program to Promote the Protection of Human Rights Defenders in Latin America, established by Amnesty International in May 1997 to follow-up the Defenders Conference (Bogotá, Colombia, May 1996). Please distribute this bulletin as widely as possible. For more information and to join the Program's Defenders Network, write to:

Human Rights Defenders Program, Americas Regional Program,

International Secretariat, Amnesty International,

1 Easton Street, London WC1X 0DW, United Kingdom

(tel: +44 20 7413 5952 / 5537; e-mail: amnestyis@amnesty.org)