New Attacks on Trade Unionists in Colombia

international | miscellaneous | news report Monday March 01, 2004 13:23 by Colombia Solidarity Campaign (Britain) - Colombia Solidarity Campaign (Britain)

Urgent Action

The threats against trade unionists continues

NEW ATTACKS TO SINALTRAINAL


The Colombia Solidarity Campaign expresses its maximum concern based on the following information that has just arrived from Colombia:

1. At 8:30 pm on January 28,strongly armed men in a green truck and two others on a motorcycle (both vehicles lacking license plates) arrived at the SINALTRAINAL headquarters in Santa Marta and asked the guard for Coca-Cola worker and SINALTRAINAL section president GERMAN CATANO. The guard said that Mr. Catano and the other union leaders were not there. The armed men left and returned hours later.

2. Adolfo Hicky Charrys Cantillo was arrested in January, suspected of carrying out the murder of SINALTRAINAL union leader and Coca Cola worker ADOLFO DE JESUS MUNERA LOPEZ in Barranquilla on August 31, 2002. We urge the authorities to continue the investigation until they identify the intellectual authors of the crime. We are concerned about the safety and life of Mr. JOSE POLO LAMBRAÑO, one of the witnesses involved in this case, and his family. We are also worried about the safety of Mr. Munera's family and urge you to take measures to protect them.

3. On the morning of February 16, 2004, unidentified persons left a handwritten note in the home of YESID ESCOBAR, the president of SINTRAMUNICIPIO, which said: "Seguí trayendo extrangeros y Te vas Morir Con Tu Familia Perro HP Sindicalista" ("If you continue to bring in foreigners, you will die along with your family, unionist dog"). These threats occurred just a few days after the visit of a commission from the New York City to Bugalagrande.

This commission, led by a New York City Councilman, was invited by SINALTRAINAL, and arrived with the intention of learning about the working conditions of Nestle and Coca Cola workers in Colombia. The commission also heard testimonies from SINTRAMUNICIPIO members who were fired when they should have been protected by their status as union leaders; this is a clear violation of their right to freedom of association. The threat against SINTRAMUNICIPIO members is an indirect threat against SINALTRAINAL, given that SINALTRAINAL was responsible for inviting the US commission to visit Bugalagrande. SINALTRAINAL believes that the threats were intended to intimidate them so that they will stop denouncing labor and human rights violations.

Please send letters to/Enviar mensajes a :

Presidente de la Rep
ública de Colombia:
Dr. Alvaro Uribe Velez
Palacio de Nariño
Carrera 8 No.7-26
Santafe de Bogota, COLOMBIA
Fax: 00 57 1 286 74 34/286, 68 42/284 21 86
[Salutation: Excelentisimo Sr. Presidente/Dear President ]
E-mail: to send e-mail to Uribe login tohttp://www.presidencia.gov.co and click on ESCRIBALE AL PRESIDENTE at the bottom of the page
Para enviar correo al Sr Presidente, dirmjase a la pagina Web:http://www.presidencia.gov.co y haga clic en ESCRIBALE AL PRESIDENTE ubicado en la parte inferior, al final de la pagina.]

Vicepresidente de la Republica de Colombia Francisco Santos
Consejeria Presidential de Derechos Humanos
Calle 7, No 654, Piso 3
Santafe de Bogota, COLOMBIA
Fax: 00 57 1 337 1351
E-mail:fsantos@presidencia.gov.co

Presidential Human Rights Programme
Programa Derechos Humanos Presidencia de la Republica
ppdh@presidencia.gov.co


Ministro de Interior y justicia

Sabas Pretelt de la Vega
Ministerio del Interior y Justicia
Palacio Echeverri, Carrera 8a, No.8-09, piso 2o.,
Santa fe de Bogota, Colombia
Fax:00 57 1 286 8025
E-mail:ministro@minjusticia.gov.co; minisint@col1.telecom.com.co;

Fiscal General de la Nacion/Public Prosecutor Dr Luis Camilo Osorio
E-mail:contacto@fiscalia.gov.co; denuncie@fiscalia.gov.co; webmaster@fiscalia.gov.co

Procurador General de la Nacion/Attorney General Dr Edgardo Josi Maya Villazon
Carrera 5 N0 15-80 F Fax: 3429723 E-mail:anticorrupcion@presidencia.gov.co

Defensor del Pueblo / Public Defender Dr Luis Eduardo Cifuentes
E-mail:secretaria_privada@hotmail.com; defensoria@defensoria.org.co

And, in the UK, to Colombian Embassy (UK): mail@colombianembassy.co.uk
Bill Rammell MP Under Secretary of State Foreign Office james.morrison@fco.gov.uk
With a copy to the Colombia Solidarity Campaign at colombia_sc@hotmail.com