The International Organizations of Civil Society that subscribe to this communique call on President Iván Duque to dialogue with the communities mobilized through the Social Minga of the Southwest, attend to their just demands, refrain from stigmatizing social protest and provide the guarantee
enough to the leaders who represent them.
Since March 10, 2019 indigenous and peasant communities, in a legitimate exercise of social protest, have mobilized in the departments of Cauca, Valle, Huila, Nariño and Caquetá through "the Social Minga of Suroccidente" and have demanded the presence in Monterilla (Caldono) of the President of the Republic Iván Duque Márquez to discuss 7 topics:
- The more than 1300 unfulfilled commitments by the Colombian State.
- The inclusion of ethnic communities in the National Development Plan
- The recognition of the peasantry as a subject of rights.
- The protection of social leaders.
- Respect for sovereignty
- The guarantee of the constitutional right to prior consultation.
- The defense of peace.
We salute the installation of the Technical Board [1] (March 21) between indigenous authorities of the Minga and the National Government with the purpose of specifying the visit of President Ivan Duque to the area. We hope that the agenda proposed by the Minga receives the attention it deserves and replaces the exclusively military response that has been given so far with the humanitarian consequences that this implies.
Since March 10, the Minga has been subject to arrests and judicial proceedings; burning of camps and camps where the protesters settle; infiltration of social protest; Physical attacks and the use of long weapons against protesters who have already left dozens injured. The most recent happened on March 20 in Cairo (Cajibío-Cauca) [2].
We deeply regret the death of the 8 indigenous guards of the Nasa Kiwe people that occurred on March 21 [3] as well as the death of police patrolman Boris Alexander Benítez, on March 19 [4], in facts still to be clarified. These crimes must be quickly investigated to bring the material and intellectual responsible to the corresponding authorities.
We emphatically reject the threats of the paramilitary group Águilas Negras, proffered through a pamphlet that has circulated in the area since March 20 against several visible people of the Minga in North Cauca.
We urge the national government to refrain from stigmatizing social protest, as this puts the lives and integrity of those who are exercising their constitutional right at serious risk.
As International Organizations of the Civil Society that work in and for Colombia we will be attentive to the development of this humanitarian situation and Human Rights, because we are convinced that without guarantees there will be no peace in Colombia.
