The Witness for Peace Solidarity Collective expresses solidarity with Colombian Social Leader, Human Rights defender, and partner María Eugenia Mosquera who received various threats last week.
On Friday, January 29th, Mosquera was on a Human Rights accompaniment with the Witness for Peace Solidarity Collective Colombia team, a multinational team of Human Rights accompaniers from the Fellowship of Reconciliation (FOR), and Conpazcol in Buenaventura, Valle del Cauca. In a meeting with social organizations in Buenaventura, Mosquera received various text messages from an unknown source threatening her and her family. This is the second time she has received messages like this in the month of January.
Mosquera is a well known Human Rights activist in Colombia with Conpazcol and works as a Human Rights accompanier with the Fellowship of Reconciliation (FOR). On this trip, she was working to document the effects that the armed conflict has had on Afro-Descendent communities in Buenaventura and the Naya River basin.
The threats against Mosquera represent a threat not only to Social Leaders here in Colombia but also to those of us doing Human Rights Accompaniment in Colombia. We join Colombian and international organizations in calling out the role that the militarization of the Colombian and United States governments plays in creating a dangerous environment in Colombia for activists and Human Rights defenders.
Since the beginning of 2021, 19 social leaders have been killed in Colombia. The United States government can pressure the Colombian government to ensure that social leaders are protected by cutting military aid to Colombia if the Colombian government cannot guarantee the safety of their citizens.
We call on our supporters and allies in the United States to contact their elected representatives, the Colombian government, and the United States embassy in Colombia to denounce the attacks against Maria Eugenia Mosquera and demand that the Colombian government provide the necessary guarantees and protections for Human Rights Defenders.
What You Can Do
Contact your representative and the embassy through Action Network by clicking here!
Retweet Conpazcol’s tweet about the threats against Maria Eugenia Mosquera and share this urgent action on social media!