Colombian Trade Unionists Win SOLIDAR Award for Struggle for Human Rights

[Judi Lynn]

Colombian Trade Unionists Win SOLIDAR Award for Struggle for Human Rights
5/02/2010

Brussels, 2 February 2010 - In a ceremony at the European Parliament tomorrow evening, SOLIDAR will award three trade union federations of Colombia, the CUT, CGT and CTC, its annual Silver Rose Award for their ongoing struggle to improve workers rights in a country where 49 trade union activists were killed in 2008 and countless others intimidated and threatened.
Colombia is the most dangerous country in the world to be a trade unionist. In 2008, 49 trade unionists were murdered, a 25% increase from the year before. This escalation in violence directly contradicts the claims of the Uribe regime that the situation is improving.

One of the 49 trade unionists killed was a pregnant teacher by the name of Luz Mariela Diaz Lopez, a member of the Putumayo Educators Association, who was shot on 1 April 2008 in the Guamez valley, Putumayo. Another trade unionist, Emerson Ivan Herrera, was killed alongside her.

The litany of violence does not stop with the killings. Thousands of human rights lawyers, journalists, students, indigenous activists and members of the political opposition have been forcibly disappeared, with torture, death and imprisonment a daily occurrence. Today, 3.6 million Colombians are considered internally displaced people, making it the country with the second highest displaced population in the world.

“Impunity for such crimes is almost absolute and this issue remains at the core of the country's human rights crisis. Successive Colombian administrations have allowed the perpetrators of widespread and severe human rights violations to escape punishment and this lack of action by the State has given a virtual green light for the abuses to continue”, said Luis Miguel Morantes Alfonso, President of the CTC.

“Reports show that the situation in Colombia is just getting worse. By awarding the Colombian trade unions with this SOLIDAR Silver Rose Award, we hope to raise awareness of the severe situation and show solidarity with the Colombian trade unions that are carrying out important work to organise Colombian workers: workers who are working under bad conditions, in dangerous working environments, with low salaries, and with no or little social protection”, said Conny Reuter, Secretary General of SOLIDAR.

In addition to the abuse of human rights, Colombian workers suffer from a severe deficit of decent working conditions.

More:
http://www.solidar.org/Page_Generale.asp?DocID=13955&thebloc=23686