Witness for Peace Delegation to Colombia: July 9th to 19th, 2013
Meet Colombian Communities Resisting Repression See the effects of U.S. policy firsthand. Learn about positive alternatives from communities at the frontlines. Gain the knowledge & skills necessary to advocate. Why? In the region near Panama, paramilitary death squads and the Colombian armys 17th Brigade violently displaced 15,000 people in 1997, killing dozens. The 17th Brigade was led by General Rito Alejo del Río, trained at the U.S. Army School of the Americas. Sustainable farms and forests were replaced by large cattle ranches and monocrop plantations, especially oil palm. Despite death threats, some displaced people have returned in a nonviolent effort to regain their lands . While the courts delay in restoring the land, the returning communities are establishing a toe-hold in the region by forming humanitarian zones. A humanitarian zone is a living area of a few acres surrounded by a barbed wire fence. The community puts signs on the fence proclaiming that this is a civilian zone and nobody with a weapon is allowed inside. Because threats continue, these communities rely on international attention for their survival. Many of the civilians murdered by Colombias armed forces and paramilitaries are family farmers. While claiming to fight narcotics and guerrillas, the Colombian army and its paramilitary allies have driven subsistence farmers off their land to make way for agribusiness. The recently-passed free-trade agreement (FTA) between Colombia and the United States is the next step. The FTA will give wealthy investors increased power to take over those lands. What to Expect Half the time, we will be in Bogotá where the climate is cool and comfortable. We will meet political analysts, human rights defenders and government officials. The rest of the time, we will visit humanitarian Zones in Urabá (the region near Panama) in the states of Antioquia and Chocó. This trip can be physically challenging: Participants must be capable of hiking with their gear in a climate that is hot and humid. However, it is worth it to meet with community members and learn about their lives and how they have created such courageous communities. (Witness for Peace is careful about security. Therefore the possibility always exists that our exact destination will change.) Cost: $1450 + Airfare This delegation fee covers all set-up, preparation, meals, lodging, interpreters, and transportation within Colombia. The fee also covers extensive reading and activist tools both before and after the delegation. Airfare to and from Colombia is not included. Applications are due by May 10, 2013 along with a nonrefundable deposit of $150. The total is due June 9, 2013. For More Information about this Delegation, Please Contact one of the Delegation Coordinators: Kate Faris: [email protected] or Patrick Bonner: [email protected] - 323-563-7940 Witness for Peace is a politically independent, grassroots organization. We are people committed to nonviolence and led by faith and conscience. Our mission is to support peace, justice and sustainable economies in the Americas by changing US policies and corporate practices which contribute to poverty and oppression in Latin America and the Caribbean. We stand with people who seek justice. www.witnessforpeace.org [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ --------------------------------------------------------------------------- LAAMN: Los Angeles Alternative Media Network --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Unsubscribe: <mailto:[email protected]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Subscribe: <mailto:[email protected]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Digest: <mailto:[email protected]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Help: <mailto:[email protected]?subject=laamn> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Post: <mailto:[email protected]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Archive1: <http://www.egroups.com/messages/laamn> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Archive2: <http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/laamn/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/laamn/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: [email protected] [email protected] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [email protected] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
