Sr. Presidente
Sr. Juan Manuel Santos
President of Colombia
Sr. Ministro
Sr. Juan Fernando Cristo
Minister of the Interior of Colombia
Dear Sirs:
Dear Sirs:
We are outraged at death threats from an anonymous caller on July 18 to Iván Madero Vergel, President of the Regional Corporation for Defending Human Rights (CREDHOS), in Barrancabermeja, Santander Department. With extremely offensive language, the caller threatened to kill him if he continued to denounce human rights violations and gave him 48 hours to leave the country. Almost immediately afterwards, the secretary of CREDHOS received an anonymous phone call asking her, also with very offensive and vulgar language, to warn Iván Madero Vergel that he should stop looking into peoples’ past and repeating that he had 48 hours to leave the country. Shortly afterwards, Madero received a text message to his mobile phone saying that if he kept denouncing human rights violations, they would plant a bomb in his office. CREDHOS immediately reported the incident to all relevant authorities, including the police and the prosecutor’s office.
CREDHOS is dedicated to denouncing human rights violations and violations of international humanitarian law committed by paramilitary groups and members of the government security forces, as well as accompanying victims and survivors in the region of Magdalena Medio. CREDHOS has spoken out against the influence paramilitary groups exercise over Barrancabermeja and the various acts of intimidation and harassment targeting CREDHOS members. Iván Madero Vergel is a beneficiary of precautionary measures granted by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) and protective measures granted by the National Protection Unit (UNP) of Colombia.
This is not the first death threat to Iván Madero and members of CREDHOS (cf our letters of Aug 23 2015; Jan 23 and Feb 22, 2014; Dec 21, 2013). David Ravelo Crespo has been in prison since 2010 serving an unjust sentence following an irregular trial in which the prosecutor was removed from a previous post and one of the key witnesses was a former paramilitary person who is currently being prosecuted for giving false testimony in another case (cf our letter of Dec 12, 2012).
Peace negotiations between the government and FARC have increased the risks for human rights defenders. Between January and March of this year, 20 human rights defenders have been killed, compared to 19 killed in the same period in 2015 and 16 in 2014. According to the Colombian civil society organization “Somos Defensores,” 90% of threats to human rights defenders in the last five years were issued by paramilitary groups, who vehemently oppose the peace process.
Because Iván Madero Vergel and CREDHOS are particularly at risk from paramilitary groups who have dominated the Magdalena Medio region since the mid-1990s, we strongly urge that you
carry out an immediate, thorough and impartial investigation into the death threats against Iván Madero Vergel, publish the results and bring those responsible to justice;
take all necessary measures to guarantee the security of Iván Madero Vergel and his family members through the full application of precautionary measures already granted by the Inter-American Commission for Human Rights and the National Protection Unit of Colombia;
guarantee in all circumstances that all human rights defenders in Colombia are able to carry out their legitimate human rights activities without fear of reprisals and free of all restrictions.
Sincerely,
Co-coordinators
