Over 2,000 elders, children, women and men from 41 Afro-Colombian community councils marched peacefully along four kilometers of the main Pan-American Highway in Northern Cauca to demand that the Colombian Government respect the constitutional rights of black communities to autonomous governance of their lands. The government’s response to the protest was smoke grenades, teargas, and at least one bullet wound as the Mobile Anti-Disturbance Squad (ESMAD) attacked the peaceful protest.
In this letter to the he Colombian Ambassador to the United States, civil society organizations in the United States express their outrage by the government’s response and call on the government to investigate the abuses committed by ESMAD, as well as the death threats received by Afro-Colombian leaders during this protest.
To view letter please click here.