[www-editoriales] Ola de asesinatos de dirigentes populares en Colombia

[Sonia Hamilton]

niko en indymedia.org wrote:

> Hola,
>  
> El colectivo CMI Colombia solicita que se publique en el sitio global un 
> editorial acerca de la reciente ola de asesinatos de dirigentes 
> populares en Colombia. Les enviamos lo que hemos preparado, 
> incluyendo título, resumen, imagen, y texto del editorial con enlaces.  
> Pedimos ayuda para traducción al inglés, pero estaría bien si se publica 
> en castellano. Por favor avisarnos si necesitan algo mas.

Here's an English translation, without the HTML links:

A Wave of Activists Assassinations in Colombia.

Extra-judicial executions by the police, paramilitary groups, paid 
assassins... anything goes when exterminating union activists and 
peasant or indigenous leaders.

Popular organisations have suffered a bloody week in Colombia: various 
organisations of unionists, peasants and human rights workers have 
established - using totally reliable sources - that on the morning of 
the 5th of August in the village of Cano Seco (Fortul, Arauca region) 
the army extra judicially executed 3 prominent social leaders from the 
region: Alirio Martínez (president of the Regional Association of 
Peasants), Leonel Goyeneche (teacher and member of organising committee 
of the Unified Confederation of Workers, Arauca), and Jorge Prieto 
(member of organising committee of the Health Workers of Colombia and of 
the Unified Confederation of Workers CUT).

On the 2nd of August in the city of Valledupar, paramilitaries 
assassinated the indigenous leader Freddy Arias, human rights 
coordinator for the indigenous organisation Kankuama; Freddy's father 
was also assassinated 3 years ago after being tortured horribly. 
Thousands of people attended Fredy's burial. 92 kankuamos have been 
assassinated since the start of the Uribe Vélez government.

After being detained by members of the intelligence service DAS on the 
26 of July, the kokonuko indigenous leader Mauricio Tote Yace was 
executed. On the 15th of July Carmen Elisa Nova (nurse, and lawyer for 
Sintraclinicas) was assassinated. Camilo Borja Pérez, USO affiliate and 
active participant in the 35 day strike in Ecopetrol was executed 3 days 
later. And as occurred after the assassination of Miguel Espinoza, the 
ex president of the regional CUT, Barranquilla became uninhabitable for 
unionists.

In Cali, they even kill the unionist's bodyguards.

The dismissal of dozens of activists from Sintraemcali has been 
accompanied by death threats to union leaders and their families. The 
threats to unionised teachers have also increased. The Unified 
Confederation of Workers CUT and the peasant convergence Black and 
Indigenous have called for a national mobilisation on the 16th of 
September and a general strike on the 12th of October, in order to 
protest against the assassinations, defend democratic rights and oppose 
the proposed laws and constitutional reforms that would eliminate the 
rights remaining for workers and citizens.

-- 
Sonia Hamilton                   |  GNU/Linux - 'free' as in
                                  |  free speech, not free beer.