Concerned for the critical situation of Afro-Colombian communities, Senator Oscar Suárez Mira and the Colombian Senate Commission on Human Rights and Hearings summoned a public hearing on November 13, 2008 to evaluate the last 15 years of Law 70 of the black communities and its level of implementation. The panelists included Afro-Colombian authorities representing various community councils, Afro-Colombian grassroots organizations, the NGOs Justice and Peace and Global Rights and Colombian government representatives and Members of Congress. Gimena Sánchez, WOLA's Senior Associate and an international observer at the hearing, wrote on its importance in underscoring the need to strengthen the rights found in this innovative law which was developed by the Afro-Colombian civil rights movement. Click here to read the article published in Actualidad Etnica.