Alert on the persecution of social leaders and human rights defenders in Colombia

El CLACSO Working Group on Legal Critique and Sociopolitical Conflicts, warns about the situation of persecution and intimidation against social leaders and human rights defenders, as well as the stigmatization of social protest, in Colombia.

For some weeks now, the National Government, headed by Iván Duque, has been carrying out an offensive deployment against the people who participated in the large mobilizations of the first half of the year in the country, capturing, carrying out raids and prosecuting some youth leaders who are now in processes of popular empowerment and reconstruction of the social fabric.

Many of them are candidates for the Municipal Youth Councils and are organizing in preparation for next year's presidential and parliamentary elections, becoming key players in the country's social change. For example, last Monday, November 22nd, nine people were arrested in the Department of Boyacá, and as of today, November 24th, seven more have been arrested in the Department of Nariño, in addition to numerous raids in various cities across the country.

We call for respect for due process guarantees, an end to persecution, and guarantees for exercising the defense of human rights and social leadership in Colombia.

We alert the international community to be vigilant regarding this strategy and we stand in solidarity with all the victims of these flagrant violations of human rights.

November 25th 2021
CLACSO Working Group
Legal critique and sociopolitical conflicts

This statement expresses the position of the Working Group Legal critique and sociopolitical conflictss and not necessarily that of the centers and institutions that make up the CLACSO international network, its Steering Committee or its Executive Secretariat.