Tag Archives: Political prisoner

1998: Persecution against human rights organisations

By 1998 Colombia had been facing years of high levels of violence, with paramilitaries from the United Self-Defence Forces of Colombia (Autodefensas Unidas de Colombia – AUC) expanding their presence to many parts of the country, Continue reading 1998: Persecution against human rights organisations

Justice… delayed

A couple of weeks ago I was all set to attend my second criminal hearing in Colombia, though this time accompanying the defense lawyer, not a lawyer on the prosecution side (representing the victims is a role permitted in the Colombian justice system), as I did in 2010 in the San Jose de Apartado massacre case. Now, two is more attempts later, I’m seeing first hand some of the frustrations that many human rights lawyers have expressed about the Colombian judicial system. Continue reading Justice… delayed

The horrors of the maximum security prison in Valledupar

My first accompaniment as a PBI volunteer, with the Fundación Comité de Solidaridad con los Presos Políticos (Foundation Committee in Solidarity with Political Prisoners) in February of this year to the maximum security prison in Valledupar, remains the most shocking and powerful experience I´ve had in Colombia. I´ll do my best to describe the experience here, but I remember how words failed me when I returned to our office in Bogota and attempted to write up a report on the accompaniment. Continue reading The horrors of the maximum security prison in Valledupar