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<h1 class="reader-title">Colombia’s Killing Fields</h1>
<span class="post_author_intro">by</span> <span
class="post_author" itemprop="author"><a
href="https://www.counterpunch.org/author/eric-draitser/"
rel="nofollow">Eric Draitser</a> - December 20, 2018</span></div>
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<p>In Colombia, the last week has been a particularly
bloody one for indigenous leaders. In the state of
Cauca, just south of the major city of Calí, the
indigenous governor Edwin Dagua Ipia was <a
href="https://www.democracynow.org/2018/12/10/headlines/colombia_indigenous_governor_killed_amid_mounting_violence"
target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener"
data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.democracynow.org/2018/12/10/headlines/colombia_indigenous_governor_killed_amid_mounting_violence&source=gmail&ust=1545154624847000&usg=AFQjCNEqsk7i-p-CjmYMSuJ7H44yO9vhMg">assassinated</a>
after having received numerous death threats from
paramilitaries in the area. He is one of at least ten
indigenous people murdered in the country just in the
last week.</p>
<p>In fact, according to the Washington Office on Latin
America (WOLA), <a
href="https://www.wola.org/2018/11/november-update-six-massacred-cauca-killings-continue/"
target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener"
data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.wola.org/2018/11/november-update-six-massacred-cauca-killings-continue/&source=gmail&ust=1545154624847000&usg=AFQjCNF-T8-t1gQeebOAQpJ-9CQJC-0tpQ">more
than 100 assassinations</a> of human rights advocates
and members of marginalized and oppressed communities
have taken place just in 2018. There is a sense among
observers that the killings have escalated since the
election of Ivan Duque, the young right wing president
and close ally of former president and international
criminal Alvaro Uribe.</p>
<p>In a damning <a href="http://www.codhes.org/"
target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener"
data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://www.codhes.org/&source=gmail&ust=1545154624848000&usg=AFQjCNHjSy6YMhFWnhMn-R85my5KfjI7bA">report</a>
published by the Consultancy on Human Rights and
Displacement (CODHES), the human rights NGO noted that
35% of the social leaders and activists murdered
belonged to ethnic minorities (19% Afro-Colombian, 15%
indigenous), a staggering figure which demonstrates just
how targeted those groups are, considering the
proportion of violence with which they’re targeted
versus their total share of the national population.
Moreover, CODHES indicated that:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“Approximately 50 percent of the victims were
authorities or representatives of ethnic territories
and organizations. Another 36 percent were community
or union leaders, 8 percent land rights claimants and
6 percent are members of the family of women social
leaders. The worst affected regions in order of total
numbers were Cauca, Valle del Cauca, Antioquia, Chocó,
and Córdoba.”</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The continued killings have drawn the attention of the
United Nations, though little has been done to stem the
tide, particularly as the government of Ivan Duque has
slithered into power. Luis Guillermo Pérez Casas, a
lawyer with the <a
href="https://www.colectivodeabogados.org/"
target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener"
data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.colectivodeabogados.org/&source=gmail&ust=1545154624848000&usg=AFQjCNFzRIVB2bnc9Kj4Sx-iDJCtwbZ40Q">Colectivo
de Abogados José Alvear Restrepo (CCAJAR)</a>,
explained in a report jointly submitted with the
European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights,
that the killings, and total impunity due to government
inaction, rise to the level of crimes against humanity.</p>
<p>He <a
href="https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2018/may/01/2017-deadliest-year-on-record-colombian-human-rights-defenders"
target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener"
data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2018/may/01/2017-deadliest-year-on-record-colombian-human-rights-defenders&source=gmail&ust=1545154624848000&usg=AFQjCNHX1i-ygmAJsSORxsAg0jwMk2vNjg">told
the Guardian</a> that:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“The murders of our colleagues must stop…We hope the
Office of the Prosecutor of the ICC will warn the
Colombian government that if the impunity persists,
they will be forced to open an investigation into
those responsible, at the highest level… The peace
process is failing because there’s a lack of
implementation of the agreement. The process that was
agreed upon has not been delivered.”</p>
</blockquote>
<p>International human rights organizations have also
raised the alarm about the violence and assassinations
in Colombia. In early 2018, after the killing of 10
human rights activists, <a
href="https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2017/02/colombia-spike-in-killings-as-activists-targeted-amid-peace-process/"
target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener"
data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2017/02/colombia-spike-in-killings-as-activists-targeted-amid-peace-process/&source=gmail&ust=1545154624848000&usg=AFQjCNHGp3IxeJO7rNL8vZ6F09cX7aS7lQ">Amnesty
International issued a report</a> which called on the
Colombian government to protect at-risk activists,
especially those in remote parts of the country, who
face extraordinary risks from paramilitaries and
contract killers. Similarly, <a
href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2017/04/24/colombia-activists-risk"
target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener"
data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.hrw.org/news/2017/04/24/colombia-activists-risk&source=gmail&ust=1545154624848000&usg=AFQjCNHVmIs-SXdUFpO2G6Q4_oTTXXrnjg">Human
Rights Watch called on the Colombian government</a> to
do more to protect activists after a very bloody 2016.
Sadly, the situation has only gotten worse.</p>
<p><strong>Brazil’s War on Activists</strong></p>
<p>The election of the fascist Jair Bolsonaro, the man who
as candidate promised to open up the Amazon to mining
and other environmentally harmful, extractive
industries, has sent a very dangerous signal to
indigenous and peasant groups in Brazil that the
impunity that has long existed will only expand further
while their rights are curtailed.</p>
<p>Bolsonaro represents a unique threat to activists from
all spheres, especially indigenous and peasant
communities who stand in the way of the right wing goal
of stripping land rights from those groups in the
interests of corporate investors and international
financiers. And unlike the somewhat more muted (though
no less destructive) rhetoric from the traditional
neoliberal right, Bolsonaro and his far right, fascist
politics will likely escalate the war on oppressed
groups from simmering to white hot.</p>
<p>Speaking of the potential impact of Bolsonaro on the
already ghastly violence against activists, Brazil-based
independent journalist Michael Fox explained to me that:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“It’s still very early to tell the effect his
election has had. Violence spiked in the lead-up to
the second round vote, but there has been a lull since
the election while people regroup The recent killing
of [two] Landless Workers’ Movement (MST) leaders was
very likely a sign of things to come.”</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Fox’s analysis, which is no doubt accurate, reflects
the general sense of anxiety about the future,
especially in the wake of the most recent assassinations
which he referenced.</p>
<p>On the night of December 8, 2018 two leaders of the
Landless Workers’ Movement (MST) were <a
href="https://www.telesurenglish.net/news/Two-Members-Of-Brazils-MST-Landless-Movement-Murdered-20181209-0009.html?utm_campaign=shareaholic&utm_medium=twitter&utm_source=socialnetwork"
target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener"
data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.telesurenglish.net/news/Two-Members-Of-Brazils-MST-Landless-Movement-Murdered-20181209-0009.html?utm_campaign%3Dshareaholic%26utm_medium%3Dtwitter%26utm_source%3Dsocialnetwork&source=gmail&ust=1545154624848000&usg=AFQjCNEtAbI1_j0p_7u_MO_WaS7DsBBHoQ">assassinated</a>
in the state of Paraiba in the Northeast of the country.
Their deaths, in an area regarded as a traditional
stronghold of the left, have left many asking just what
the future holds for activists in Brazil.</p>
<p>The assassinations are certainly not the first
high-profile killings of social movement activists in
Brazil in recent years, though they have received some
added attention given that they come on the heels of the
Bolsonaro victory – a worrying signal for some that the
horrendous violence is only going to escalate.</p>
<p>To put it in perspective, the Brazilian religious
advocacy group Comissão Pastoral da Terra – CPT
(Pastoral Land Commission) released a thorough report
which found that:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>The brutal reality of Brazil’s rural areas has become
increasingly harsher since 2013, back when 34 murders
were recorded. In four years, these figures have
increased by 105%, reaching 70 executions in 2017 – a
15% increase over 2016.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>It should be noted that, of course, this shocking rise
in volence cannot be attributed to Bolsonaro himself,
but rather to deeper structural and economic factors, in
particular corproate privatization. As CPT coordinator
Ruben Siqueira <a
href="https://www.brasildefato.com.br/2018/04/17/brazil-killings-in-land-conflicts-up-by-105-since-2003/"
target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener"
data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.brasildefato.com.br/2018/04/17/brazil-killings-in-land-conflicts-up-by-105-since-2003/&source=gmail&ust=1545154624848000&usg=AFQjCNGl0rEwrgPI4YLmweKeB72dcqtDZQ">explained</a>
to Brasil de Fato:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>We see this as a new land rush, in which land is a
means of production, a store of value, like wood,
water, ore, agribusiness, expansion of land-based
businesses. This has to do with the financial crisis
that started in 2008 with the speculative bubble.
Since then, the hegemonic capitalist sector, which is
financial capital, is looking for backing, something
that can support this international speculative game</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Indeed, it seems the escalation of violence against
indigenous and peasant activists is directly connected
to the growing need for consolidation of land and
natural resources resulting from the econmoic downturn
of the last ten years. However, it is perhaps even more
precise to pinpoint the drop in commodity prices, most
conspicuously the collapse of oil prices in 2014-2015,
as one of the primary drivers of this renewed push for
capital accumulation.</p>
<p>And though this process was jumpstarted during the
tenure of Dilma Rousseff and the Workers’ Party (PT), it
has picked up momentum under the right wing Temer
government. And it’s about to go into overdrivwe with
Bolsonaro taking power. For it is Bolsonaro himself who
has <a
href="http://www.climatechangenews.com/2018/10/08/bolsonaro-made-grim-threats-amazon-people/"
target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener"
data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://www.climatechangenews.com/2018/10/08/bolsonaro-made-grim-threats-amazon-people/&source=gmail&ust=1545154624848000&usg=AFQjCNFaoDoN-RdEVUTF6CTMpkFwzFPIVA">promised
to open up as much protected land as possible</a> to
big business.</p>
<p>Indeed, within days of Bolsonaro’s victory, reports
began to circulate that indigenous lands were being
invaded and/or seized, with all the attendant violence
one would expect. As Beto Marubo, a native leader from
the Javari Valley Indigenous Land in Brazil’s far west,
<a
href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/2018/10/brazil-president-jair-bolsonaro-promises-exploit-amazon-rain-forest/"
target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener"
data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/2018/10/brazil-president-jair-bolsonaro-promises-exploit-amazon-rain-forest/&source=gmail&ust=1545154624848000&usg=AFQjCNG-QsWUfKq18o_AmHRb6gdLfTuxCw">explained</a>
to National Geographic, “Many brothers tell us there are
invasions, people entering the territories with no
regard for the rules and no fear of the authorities.”
This final point is critical because while impunity has
long been the norm in Brazil, the utter disregard for
any semblance of governmental or law enforcement
oversight will likely increase underr Bolsoanro who has
all but given his blessing to displacement and violence
against these groups.</p>
<p>Ultimately, the struggle is about land rights,
especially for the indigenous peoples who have fought
for official demarcation of lands for decades.</p>
<p>Dinamã Tuxá, Coordinator of Brazil’s Association of
Indigenous Peoples (APIB) <a
href="https://grist.org/article/4-indigenous-leaders-on-what-bolsonaro-means-for-brazil/"
target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener"
data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://grist.org/article/4-indigenous-leaders-on-what-bolsonaro-means-for-brazil/&source=gmail&ust=1545154624848000&usg=AFQjCNFdRsQz_2iV1h5CJu5GeRTg9ylmsQ">summed
it up neatly</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>This scenario is totally heartbreaking. Bolsonaro has
made clear and consistent declarations about ending
the titling of indigenous lands, which are completely
opposed to our rights. His racist, homophobic,
misogynist, fascist discourse shows how Brazilian
politics will be in the coming years… His discourse
gives those who live around indigenous lands the right
to practice violence without any sort of
accountability. Those who invade indigenous lands and
kill our people will be esteemed. He represents an
institutionalization of genocide in Brazil.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Of course it must be remembered that Afro-Brazilian
communities will be targeted as well. Marielle Franco’s
assassination in March 2018 was in many ways a watershed
moment for the social movements in the country. However,
rather than driving positive political change on the
national level, Brazil has instead elected a fascist
leader who praises the extrajudicial methods
historically employed by the dictatorship and its
enablers in the country. It remains to be seen how the
left can regroup, respond, and reestablish its political
power.</p>
<p>One thing is certain in both Brazil and Colombia: the
far right is in power, and that means the war on social
movements and activists is only just getting started.</p>
<p>And while it may seem bleak as we read about seemingly
daily atrocities visited upon the indigenous and poor of
these (and other Latin American) countries, we cannot
simply despair. Instead, we must organize and mobilize.
For those of us in the Global North, that means doing
what we can to be in solidarity with these activists,
helping to build power internationally.</p>
<p>Duque, Bolsonaro, and the far right of Latin America
may have ascended to power, but they are not omnipotent.</p>
<p>Now is the time for organizing; the time for struggle;
the time for resistance.</p>
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