Demand Release of Detained Colombian Activists, Victims of Baseless Prosecutions

Date Issued: February 24, 2009

"If they cannot assassinate you, they follow you, threaten you and prosecute you. They prosecute us for whatever matter."
-Francisco Ramirez, human rights lawyer and president of the Colombian Mine Workers' Union SINTRAMINERCOL

Malicious criminal investigations by prosecutors are endangering Colombian human rights defenders and undermining their work, according to a new report by Human Rights First.

The report, Baseless Prosecutions of Human Rights Defenders in Colombia: In the Dock and Under the Gun, details the cases of unfounded prosecutions against 32 activists. Colombian prosecutors accuse human rights defenders of membership in a guerrilla organization and rely heavily on false testimony from ex-guerrillas and inadmissible intelligence reports. Baseless prosecutions are attempts to silence and discredit human rights activists.

Cases are often eventually dropped, but by then the defenders have been left exposed to threats and violence by paramilitary groups. And some defendants, such as Martin Sandoval, Carmelo Agamez, Miguel Gonzalez, and Andres Gil, remain in detention today.

The Colombian government has set the tone for this pattern of unfounded prosecutions. For example, this month, the Colombian President and Defense Minister publicly claimed that renowned human rights investigator and journalist Hollman Morris was "[hiding] behind his journalism to become a permissive accomplice of terrorism." Shortly after these false claims, Morris received many death threats. The Attorney General stated that at the request of the government he would open a criminal investigation into Morris for alleged ties to terrorism.

Take action now to urge the Colombian Government to:

• release human rights defenders such as Sandoval, Agamez, Gonzalez, and Gil who are unjustly detained as a result of specious criminal investigations; and
• respond to this widespread problem by implementing the systemic reforms contained in Human Rights First's report, which seek to end the baseless prosecutions of human rights defenders.
  

Background

For more information on the baseless prosecution of human rights defenders in Colombia, see Human Rights First's report: http://www.humanrightsfirst.org/defenders/reports/index.aspx

For more information on the stigmatization of Hollman Morris: http://cpj.org/2009/02/cpj-hrw-object-to-uribes-accusations-against-hollm.php

Sample Letter:

Dr. Mario Hernan Iguaran Arana
Fiscal General de la Nacion
Diagonal 22-B #52-01
Bogota, Colombia.

Dear Attorney General:

I am writing to express my concern over the use of baseless criminal prosecutions against human rights defenders in Colombia. I urge you to immediately release from detention human defenders such as Martin Sandoval, Carmelo Agamez, Miguel Gonzalez, and Andres Gil and to implement systemic reforms as suggested in Human Rights First's new report.

The report, Baseless Prosecutions of Human Rights Defenders in Colombia: In the Dock and Under the Gun, documents 32 recent cases of unfounded prosecutions against defenders. It also contains a comprehensive accounting of the use of prosecutions and criminal investigations against defenders, based on detailed analysis of court documents and interviews with government officials and human rights defenders. Some examples of the many defenders investigated for their human rights advocacy are Martin Sandoval, President of the Permanent Committee of Human Rights in Arauca, currently detained and accused of rebellion; Carmelo Agamez, Technical Secretary of the Movement of Victims of State Crimes (MOVICE), currently detained and accused of conspiracy to commit a crime with paramilitary forces; and Miguel Gonzalez and Andres Gil, board members of the Rural Association of Rio Valle del Rio Cimitarra (ACVC), currently detained and accused of rebellion.

There are many similarities in the baseless prosecutions of defenders. They are usually accused of rebellion and membership in a guerrilla group and stigmatized as terrorist collaborators. Prosecutors often rely on coached and unreliable testimony by ex-guerrillas and inadmissible intelligence files. The politically motivated charges discredit and stigmatize human rights defenders individually and as a class, and place them at considerable risk of reprisal attacks by paramilitaries and others. The baseless prosecution of defenders undermines the basic rights and freedoms of individuals, erodes due process, and weakens democratic institutions in Colombia.

I am concerned that the Colombian government has provided the context for these unfounded prosecutions. For example, this month the Colombian President and Defense Minister publicly claimed that renowned human rights investigator and journalist Hollman Morris was "[hiding] behind his journalism to become a permissive accomplice of terrorism." Shortly after these false claims, Morris received many death threats and is now considering leaving the country. You have stated that, at the request of the government, you would open a criminal investigation into Morris for alleged ties to terrorism. I am aware of no evidence linking Morris to the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and urge you to immediately close this investigation.

In addition to curtailing their rhetoric, the Colombian authorities have a responsibility to implement systemic reforms. Instead of instigating more false investigations against human rights defenders, I urge you to take immediate action to stop the problem, including:
1) empowering your human rights unit to review all criminal investigations against human rights defenders and close those that fail to comport with the due process standards contained in the Colombian Criminal Procedural Code;
2) stopping prosecutorial use of coerced and coached witness testimony as a basis to initiate criminal investigations against defenders; and
3) prosecuting officials found to have violated the law in falsely investigating human rights defenders.

Thank you for your attention to these urgent matters. I will continue to closely monitor these situations.