What a Colombian Indigenous Group Wants from Obama

Extracts from Vivir Latino, Colombia, 10 Nov 2008

"During a pre-election debate, Barack Obama made a clear point about one of the reasons he did not support the Colombian Free Trade agreement, the violence against workers. The Association of Indigenous Councils of Northern Cauca, ACIN, were appreciative of Obama's position, but wanted to shed light on their specific struggle and the struggles of other Native peoples in Colombia. So they, like so many others are doing, sent a letter to the President-Elect. From the letter released yesterday:

First, please accept our sincerest congratulations. We congratulate you for having won because of the noblest aspirations of your people. We believe your election expresses the deep desire for change felt by the majority of the American people: change in the economy and society, change in international relations, and from there, we hope, a change in the relation between the United States of America and the indigenous peoples of the world.

During your historic campaign, you publicly noted some of what Colombians currently face: you acknowledged the murders of trade unionists by the regime and stated your reservations about a Free Trade Agreement with Colombia, which our people have decided against through a democratic referendum, about which we have written before. We thank you for this, and now want you to know about the specific situation facing Colombia's indigenous peoples.

In the past six years we have lost 1,200 people to assassinations by armed groups, both legal and illegal: right-wing paramilitaries, guerrillas, police, and members of the Armed Forces. These murders have created insecurity, and this insecurity has been used to strip us of our rights with what we call the 'Laws of Disposession', legislation and other institutional norms that legalize the loss of our lands, our fundamental freedoms, and our rights".

(Letter from: Association of Indigenous Couincils of Northern Cauca ACIN (Cxab Wala Kiwe-Territory of the Great People) Cauca, Mother Earth, November 10th, 2008 Santander de Quilichao)

Obama Highlights Colombia Trade Union Deaths in US Presidential Debate

Extracts from Justice for Colombia, 16 Oct 2008

"Wednesday night's US presidential debate in New York City saw Barack Obama again criticise Colombia for the "targeted assassination" of trade unionists. The Democrat candidate said that "there have not been prosecutions" for the killings, which he described as occurring on a "fairly consistent basis".

Obama made his remarks after Republican candidate John McCain accused him of not supporting a Free Trade Agreement with Colombia – an Agreement that Democrats in the US Congress have refused to pass due to Colombia's appalling human and labour rights record.

"The history in Colombia right now is that labor leaders have been targeted for assassination on a fairly consistent basis and there have not been prosecutions," said Obama in response to McCain during the debate which was watched by tens of millions of TV viewers. "We have to stand for human rights and we have to make sure that violence isn't being perpetrated against workers who are just trying to organise for their rights," continued Obama.

The Democrat candidate has already spoken out against the ongoing violations perpetrated against Colombian trade unionists on several occasions this year. In February he said he was concerned by reports from Colombia "of the involvement of the administration with human rights violations and the suppression of workers", and in June he told a rally that he would oppose a Free Trade Agreement with Colombia "until I am certain they are not killing union leaders."

However, perhaps the harshest criticism of the Colombian regime has come from former Democrat Vice-President Al Gore who last year refused to share a platform with Colombian President Alvaro Uribe. Gore cited allegations of "deeply troubling" links between Uribe and paramilitary death squads as his reason for pulling out of a conference that boh men were due to speak at".
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* Since 2001, more than 700 union representatives have been assassinated, at a rate higher than the yearly murder rate in the rest of the world.

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