The following article was written by Katrina Plotz who went on the Colombia
Action Network delegation in July to Colombia. It will be published in the
September issue of the Women Against Military Maddness newsleter
(http://www.worldwidewamm.org).
In July, four members of the Anti-War Committee and Colombia Action Network,
(Meredith Aby, Erika Zurawski, and Jon and Katrina Plotz) traveled to
Colombia to witness the impact of U.S. military aid to a government waging
war against its own people. We were hosted by FENSUAGRO, the national
peasant workers union.
Colombia is the third-largest recipient of U.S. aid. Since 2000, Colombia
has received $4.7 billion from the military aid package, “Plan Colombia.”
Originally proposed under the “War on Drugs,” the Bush administration
increased aid to Colombia under the rhetoric of the “War on Terror.” The
groups that constitute the armed resistance in Colombia’s fifty-year civil
war are on the State Department’s list of terrorist organizations. This
allows the Colombian military to violently intimidate anyone who questions
the social, economic, and political policies of the Colombian government.
President Alvaro Uribe is an ally of the Bush administration because of his
support for free trade, which benefits multi-national corporations at the
expense of the Colombian poor. Anyone working for social justice in the
country is labeled part of the armed resistance. Therefore, union
organizers, human rights workers, and student activists are targets of a
Colombian government with the worst human rights record in the Western
Hemisphere.
When we arrived in Bogotá, we were greeted by national executives of
FENSUAGRO. Their union fights for land reform, defends campesinos, protests
unjust exploits of large landowners, and resists U.S. intervention in
Colombia. For this work, their union has had numerous members abducted,
detained, and murdered by right-wing paramilitaries. Over 500 members of
FENSUAGRO have been murdered since 1978, and in May 2006, 25 leaders were
arrested, and several received death threats. Despite constant danger,
FENSUAGRO continues to increase its membership.
On May 15th, FENSUAGRO mobilized 150,000 campesinos, indigenous people,
Afro-Colombians, and students to protest unjust socio-economic conditions.
They occupied the Pan-American Highway for several days and were confronted
by paramilitary forces. Some of the activists “disappeared” at checkpoints.
Two days later, they were attacked and fought back with rocks. At least
60 people were wounded and several were killed.
On May 18th, leaders met with authorities to negotiate. Meanwhile,
civilians were beaten and attacked with a poisonous gas. Several were
detained, others disappeared, and some were killed. Because human rights
workers have not completed their investigation, the number of dead is still
unknown.
We met many campesinos who mobilized, as well as leaders who organized
subsequent negotiations with the government. We observed a meeting between
campesinos and government officials about the lack of roads in rural
communities. Without quality roads, campesinos transport crops on foot or
by mule. As a result, food often spoils before reaching the market.
Campesinos presented specific proposals for road improvement which were
rejected. A national government representative blamed them for not
addressing the local authorities, while local officials claimed they
couldn’t approve projects without resources from the national government.
Several campesinos spoke out boldly. “We know the state has money, but
instead of investing in campesinos, you use your money to kill us.” Later a
woman directly challenged government officials. “You’re not here because
you want to be here. You’re here because the people mobilized, and we’ll do
it again.” The meeting continued without any concrete decisions.
That evening, we met with campesino leaders. They spoke of desperate
farmers with no choice but to grow coca, a leaf used in cocaine. Due to
unequal land distribution, lack of infrastructure, and low free-trade
prices, most campesinos cannot provide for their families. The cultivation
of coca is the only viable alternative: it grows easily in harsh conditions,
its buyers come straight to their farms, and it yields a good price. Instead
of reducing demand for cocaine in the U.S., our government spends billions
on helicopters and chemicals to fumigate coca in Colombia. This has a
detrimental impact on the health of people and the environment. “They
fumigate everything,” explained one campesino. “It’s indiscriminate. They
kill food crops along with coca. They poison rivers and damage the
ecosystem.” Campesinos repeatedly emphasized, “We don’t want to grow
illicit crops. We know the damage they cause, but this is a result of the
socio-economic conditions we live in.” They are currently working on a crop
substitution proposal in which they would stop growing coca if the
government agrees to social investment, enabling campesinos to re-enter the
legal economy.
The Bush administration has requested $580 million for the brutal Colombian
government for 2006. The notorious School of the Americas in Ft. Benning,
Georgia continues to train more soldiers from Colombia than from any other
country. The U.S. government is clearly at war with the Colombian people.
Social justice activists have the responsibility to stand in solidarity with
Colombians and demand an end to U.S. intervention in their country.