Support the Peace Process in Colombia!
Speech given by Jennie Eisert, member of the Anti-War Committee, at our Minneapolis protest in solidarity with Colombia on August 7, 2018.
We are here today to demand that the US government end aid to Colombia, and to uphold the Peace Accords in its current state. Colombia is very important for US Imperialism. Over 60 years of violence and civil war has left over 220,000 people dead, 92,000 disappeared, and 7.7 million forcibly displaced. Colombia has the sad distinction of having the largest population of internally-displaced people. Throughout this war, 70% to 85% of violence and human rights abuse was committed by the Colombian armed forces and the right-wing paramilitary death squads. By the end of this speech you will take home with you that the people of Colombia are resistant and resilient fighters, and will not succumb on their knees; they never have and never will!
Under President Clinton, back in 1998, Plan Colombia was created to provide aid to Colombia under the guise of eradicating coca, when the ultimate goal was to eradicate the FARC (the largest guerrilla army) and keep the Left under its thumb. Where does this aid come from? From US tax dollars that should be used for human needs here instead of for death and repression in Colombia. The US needed Colombia to become the Israel of Latin America, and that is what it has become. They are the gatekeepers of Latin America; they have been used to repress not only their own people, but to go into other countries like how the paramilitary has been used in Venezuela, and the military in Mexico and Honduras. Colombia has trained over 25,000 people in other countries, including Israel. Colombia joining NATO has helped provide a permanent place in Latin America for the US. As of yesterday, the US was at Venezuela’s door waiting for an opening since the drone attack against the Venezuelan president failed.
During peace talks between Colombian President Pastrana and the FARC, Pastrana pulled out under the urging of Clinton. Despite the Leahy provision against funding human rights abusers, Colombia has consistently been given a waiver to receive aid. In 1991, Colombia created a new constitution that prohibited the extradition of Colombians to other countries; during the Bush and Uribe era this was dismantled in order to extradite FARC members like Simon Trinidad, a long time peace negotiator. In the current Peace Accords that the FARC and President Santos signed, it states no more extraditions to the US. The incoming President Ivan Duque wants to extradite Jesus Santrich, who was another instrumental main negotiator for peace for the FARC. The United States and Colombian governments keep ignoring human rights.
Back in the 1980’s, the FARC laid down their weapons after peace negotiations to open up the two party arena, founding the Union Patriotica (UP). As they became very popular, the State sponsored a repression from assassinations to forced displacement to exile, via paramilitaries and military; it was political genocide. In total, 102 political representatives and 5,000 supporters were killed. Today, the same is happening with the Marcha PAtriotica (MAPA) from assassinations to disappearances from the same actors. MAPA formed in 2012 during the Peace talks and is made up of roughly 2,000 organizations from social justice movements, from students/teachers/unions/Indigenous and Afro Colombians/Campesinos/former political prisoners, etc. They were created to achieve “the second and final independence.” Two years ago, I went on a political delegation to meet with people and organizations who were a part of MAPA. Whenever they would be asked, were they were scared for if the FARC laid down their arms and if what happened in the 80’s and 90’s would happen again? They replied, we desire Peace; the war will not stop suddenly, and the world is watching. There are measures put in place. The UN Security Council was involved in the peace talks because it illuminates the international character of the conflict and because other countries are invested in ensuring the success of the agreement. Despite signing of the Peace Accords on November 2016, Colombian paramilitaries and US backed armed forces have killed over 445 social movement leaders, ex-insurgents, and their family members, including especially, members of the Marcha Patriótica popular movement for a just peace, and members and candidates of Left and Center-Left political parties.
Human rights abuses have only gotten worse since paramilitary-backed President Duque was elected in April. Since his election, social activists have been killed at a rate of more than one per day. Trump has urged Colombia to abandon agreements for rural development and crop substitution programs to eradicate illicit crops. This has encouraged a string of massacres and killings of rural activists. The Trump administration has renewed calls for extraditions of former insurgents that could nullify the Agreements. These policies have resulted in several killings, including the October 5, 2017 massacre of peasant protesters in Tumaco by Colombia’s National Police. We must call on our government to halt its complicity in terror of Colombia’s social movements and stop undermining a hard-one peace agreement.
Since 1998, the US has spent $12 billion, funding war and repression in Colombia. Colombian social movements are clearly victims of US-backed state and paramilitary terrorism. Despite all of the tragedies the people of Colombia have faced, they persevere, remaining passionate, strong, and feel– and don’t see themselves as victims but –as survivors, fighters who are vigilant in their voices and actions. WE should follow the lead of the Colombian people. As one of the women I met two years ago said “We will always keep struggling and fighting, want peace with social justice.”