PEACE COMMUNITY MURDER

PARAMILITARIES MURDER FRANCISCO PUERTA OF THE PEACE COMMUNITY OF SAN JOSE DE APARTADO
14 MAY 2007 Por declraracion completa en castellano vea Peace Community website

Inspite of the arrival of delagates worldwide for San Jose de Apartado in late March, the peace community has suffered a further assasination at the hand of paramilitaries. Since then there have been several well publicized threats against the lives of the community members living in this humanitarian zone.

The muder follows a sting of threats, arrests and violations of the physical and phsycological well being of community members and associates in the proceeding days. These acts were carried out by groups going under the name of Aguilas Negras (a remobilized paramilitary group). All the occurances are documented, dated and timed by the community and continue under impunity from the State both locally and nationally.

The Community sends the following message and call for action:

The continuous deaths, aggressions and threats against our process have not stopped. All the forms of destruction are utilized against us by paramilitaries in joint action with the police to exert pressure, threats and death. Ours historic duty, in the search for respect of civillians in armed conflict, is to give testimony to the facts so that humanity is able to some day to judge these terrorist acts. Again we have to tell of a new murder in violation of the humanitarian zone and against our community:

- Today Monday, 14 from May to the 7:00 to.m., FRANCISCO PUERTA (campesino leader and excoordinador of the humanitarian zone of La Vereda Miramar) was murdered in the front of the Apartadó Bus Terminal by paramilitaries. Two paramilitaries approached him near the store in front of the Terminal where was seated and shot him several times. They subsequently left in peace despite the police presence that surrounded the location.

The same today at 7:30 am. a group of six paramilitaries in civillian clothing were seen with long weapon in el Mangolo. Another four civillian paramilitaries were found with short weapons in Tierra Amarillo. The Military and Police they were found only two minutes from this paramilitary presence.

- On May 13, 10:40: a trader from Apartado arrived to San Josesito to buy some pigs. There he conveyed a message that paramilitaries in the neighborhoods of Apartadó were saying that they were going to carry out a massacre in the Peace Community.

...These facts show the drive of paramilitary murderer that the government tries to hide. They give testimony to a new wave of murders against the leaders of the humanitarian zones and of community members.

This drive of extermination against the community from the Government has again failed since we do not go back before our principles of peace, we will continue firmer than ever. Alongside national and international solidarity we are further animated to continue in transparency to search for an alternative and just world. The work and memory of FRANCISCO gives us force to continue ahead, our greatest sympathy goes to his children and family.

PEACE COMMUNITY OF SAN JOSE DE APARTADO
Mayo 14 de 2007

Please direct denouncements to the followiing authorities demanding that the Colombian Government guarentees the right to life of the community members and recognises it integrity.

Dr. Álvaro UribeVélez - Presidente de la Republica
E-mail: auribe@presidencia.gov.co
Fax: 57 1 566 2071

Dr. Francisco Santos. - Vicepresidente de Colombia
E-mail: fsantos@presidencia.gov.co

Dr. Carlos Franco - Director del Programa de Derechos Humanos de Vicepresidencia
E-mail: cefranco@prsidencia.gov.co, fibarra@presidencia.gov.co

Dr. Michael Frühling - Oficina del Alto Comisionado de Naciones Unidas para los derechos humanos.
E-mail: oacnudh@hcrh.org.co
Fax: 57 1 6293637

COLOMBIA SOLIDARITY CAMPAIGN ADDS:

In the UK, also send your e-mail to Colombian Embassy: mail@colombianembassy.co.uk with a copy to info@colombiasolidarity.org.uk

If you are in the USA, these are the Colombian Ambassador's contact points in Washington, DC:
Sr. Luis Alberto Moreno
Ambassador of the Republic of Colombia
2118 Leroy Place NW
Washington, D.C. 20008
Teléfono: +1 (202) 387 8338
Fax: +1 (202) 232 8643
E-mail: emwas@colombiaemb.org