Colombian Human Rights Defenders Should Be Supported, Not Threatened

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From Defender Alert Network:

Colombian Human Rights Defenders Should Be Supported, Not Threatened


On May 13, 2005, Colombian human rights defender Soraya Gutierrez Arguello received a package containing a decapitated doll whose body had been quartered, burnt in several areas, and covered in red nail polish to make it appear bloodied. An attached handwritten note read: "You have a lovely family. Look after them, don't sacrifice them."

Ms. Gutierrez Arguello is President of the respected Colombian human rights organization, Corporacion Colectivo de Abogados, 'Jose Alvear Restrepo,' (Jose Alvear Restrepo Lawyers Collective).

The Colombian newspaper El Tiempo ran two classified advertisements around the same time referring to the need for security guards and other new staff at the Lawyers Collective. They appeared designed to intimidate the organization. They included the organization's telephone numbers and address and were placed by unknown individuals. One referred to the precise date, time, and address of a planned meeting between the organization and victims of human rights violations.

These latest threats to Ms. Gutierrez Arguello and the Lawyers Collective follow on the heels of several recent attacks against human rights activists in Colombia. Human rights defenders have been killed or forced to flee Colombia, where intimidation and human rights violations are carried out in a climate of impunity.

Please join Human Rights First in urging the Colombian authorities to ensure the safety of those courageous enough to speak out against human rights violations, such as Ms. Gutierrez and the members of the Jose Alvear Restrepo Lawyers Collective, and guarantee their ability to carry out their work free of harassment and intimidation.

Click Here to Take Action: http://action.humanrightsfirst.org/campaign/gutierrez/ii86xu62p736nd5?

Click here for more information on human rights defenders in Colombia.

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