The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders has posted this URGENT INTERVENTION (in Spanish) on the following situation in Colombia.

The Observatory notes that it has received with deep concern information on death threats against members of the Regional Corporation for the Defense of Human Rights (CREDHOS) and two of the organizations it accompanies, the Federation of Artisan, Environmental and Tourism Fishermen of Santander (FEDEPESAN) and the Committee for the Defense of Water, Life, and territory of Puerto Wilches (Aguawil).

The Observatory highlights:

CREDHOS: On 24 March 2021, the CREDHOS office in Barrancabermeja, Santander department, received a phone call in which an unknown person threatened to kill all members of the organization, ordering them to “stop making publications and be toads, all CREDHOS is a military target, has 48 hours to leave Barranca.”

Aguawil: On January 29, 2021, in the evening hours, two unknown men broke into the home of Yuvelis Natalia Morales, a member of Aguawil, in Puerto Wilches, and threatened her with death warning her to “stop fucking” because they “could kill her any day.”

FEDEPESAN: On January 20, 2021, unknown persons attacked Yuli Andrea Velázquez, president of FEDEPESAN, and her family with guns while in their home in llanito de Barrancabermeja.

The Observatory asks that emails be sent to Colombian authorities urging them to, among other actions, “Ensure the safety and physical and psychological integrity of the membership of CREDHOS, FEDEPESAN, and Aguawil, including through the implementation of immediate and effective protection measures by the National Protection Unit (UNP).”

To read the full URGENT INTERVENTION, please click here.

The Observatory is a joint program of the World Organization Against Torture (OMCT) and the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH).