CP/DEC. 39 (1681/09)

DECLARATION ON THE MURDER OF AWÁ INDIGENOUS COLOMBIANS BY THE FARC

(Adopted at its session held on February 25, 2009)
 

THE PERMANENT COUNCIL OF THE ORGANIZATION OF AMERICAN STATES,

DEEPLY CONCERNED about the recent news of the brutal murder of indigenous Colombians from the Awá ethnic group, perpetrated and publicly acknowledged by the farc;

REPUDIATING the use of practices of intimidation and violence against, and murder of, members of indigenous communities in Colombia; and

TAKING NOTE of the statements by the international community regarding these events, in the framework of the United Nations (UN), the General Secretariat of the Organization of American States (OAS), the delegation of the European Commission in Colombia, the Group of 24 (G-24), and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR),

DECLARES:

1. Its strongest condemnation of the murder of indigenous Colombians from the Awá ethnic group by the farc.

2. Its solidarity with and heartfelt condolences to the victims’ families, the Awá indigenous community, and the people and Government of Colombia for this heinous crime.

3. The need for the immediate return of the bodies of the indigenous Awá that have not yet been recovered.

4. The need to investigate and to take the necessary action to punish the perpetrators of these crimes.