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Letter of Protest to Colombian Embassy

Issue date

Mr. Fernando Alzate Donoso

Minister Plenipotentiary
Embassy of Colombia
3 Hans Crescent
London
SW1X OLN

Dear Mr Alzate Donoso

Assassinations of Colombian Trade Unionists

On behalf of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) representing British workers and the 6.5 million members of our affiliated unions I regret that I have to write once again to raise our concerns in the strongest possible terms over the attempted assassination of Mario Montes de Oca Anaya and the murder of Alberto Luis Pastrana Soto.

Mr Montes de Oca Anaya and Mr Luis Pastrana Soto were shot outside the hospital San Jeronimo in Monteria, Cordoba on 1st October. Mr Montes de Oca Anaya is a leading member of the Cordoba teachers association, ADEMACOR. He had reported numerous death threats but no official protection was provided.

Your government has gone to great pains to argue that there has been a dramatic fall in the number of trade unionists being assassinated. Tragically the facts on the ground continue to contradict this.

The ongoing killings - which as we have already highlighted this year are continuing to run at the rate of one a week - indicate that contrary to the assurances given by your Government to the international community, little is being done to safeguard the lives of trade union members and activists in Colombia, or investigate and prosecute such murders.

I must again restate our position that until this situation is rectified, the British trade union movement will continue to urge our own Government to end their political and military support for the Colombian Government and oppose the signing of any bilateral trade agreements between the EU and Colombia.

I look forward to hearing from you regarding what measures are being taken to find and prosecute the murderers in these cases.

Yours sincerely

Brendan Barber

General Secretary

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