Recognizes Afro-Colombians for their contributions to Columbia's economic, social, and cultural fabric.
Calls upon the government of Colombia to combat racial discrimination and human rights violations.
Urges the government of Colombia to: (1) demand politicians linked to para-politics scandals are investigated and brought to justice; and (2) implement a policy that ensures proper execution of assistance programs for Afro-Colombians and internally displaced communities.
Encourages the U.S. government to ensure that the previous consultation mechanism with Afro-Colombians and marginalized groups is applied in the free trade agreement negotiation and in Plan Colombia's implementation.
[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 618 Introduced in House (IH)]
110th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. RES. 618
Recognizing the importance of addressing the plight of Afro-Colombians.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
August 3, 2007
Mr. Payne (for himself, Ms. Lee, Mr. Lewis of Georgia, Mr. Conyers, Mr.
Rush, Mr. McGovern, Mr. Honda, and Ms. Solis) submitted the following
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Recognizing the importance of addressing the plight of Afro-Colombians.
Whereas Afro-Colombians have experienced economic, social, and political
injustices, as a result of their skin color and ancestry and have been
targets of violence and intimidation;
Whereas Afro-Colombians today compromise over 25 percent of Colombia's
population--the second largest Afro-descendant population in Latin
America and the third largest outside of Africa;
Whereas the vast majority of Afro-Colombians live on the Pacific and Atlantic
Coasts and the Valley of Magdalena and Cauca Rivers of Colombia within
the departments of Choco, Valle del Cauca, Cauca, Narino, Bolivar,
Magdalena, Sucre, and Cesar and endure extreme humanitarian conditions,
as a result of marginalization, neglect, and the country's 40-year armed
conflict and violence;
Whereas the internal armed conflict fueled by drug trafficking has generated
violence against Afro-Colombian civilians and has led to the
appropriation of Afro-Colombian territories and internal displacement
creating huge obstacles for social and economic progress of the Afro-
Colombian population;
Whereas the Government of Colombia has maintained close ties with the United
States and is the largest recipient of bilateral United States foreign
aid outside of the Middle East and South Asia;
Whereas the Government of Colombia has received an estimated $6,000,000,000 in
military, counter-narcotics, and other aid since 2000, primarily through
congressionally-legislated Plan Colombia;
Whereas, although a major beneficiary of United States foreign assistance, the
Government of Colombia has not effectively addressed racial
discrimination, violence, and social and political marginalization
facing Afro-Colombians;
Whereas Colombia has the second largest population of internally displaced
people in the world, and Afro-Colombians are the most affected,
compromising an estimated 40 percent of Colombia's 3,800,000 internally
displaced persons;
Whereas an estimated 76 percent of Afro-Colombians live in conditions of extreme
poverty, 42 percent are unemployed, and only 2 percent are able to
attend college;
Whereas the life expectancy for Afro-Colombians is two decades shorter than the
national average, with an estimated 82 percent of Afro-Colombians
lacking access to basic public services;
Whereas Afro-Colombians are underrepresented in positions of leadership, power,
and authority within the social, political, and economic spheres of the
country, yet in recent years, Afro-Colombian representation in
government has increased: currently there are 2 Afro-Colombian senators
and 7 Afro-Colombian members of the House of Representatives;
Whereas the department of Choco, a region that has the largest percentage of
Afro-Colombians with an estimated 70 percent of the total population of
the state, also suffers from the lowest per-capita level of government
investment in health, education, and infrastructure, with a significant
proportion of the population facing an increase in illiteracy;
Whereas the Colombian healthcare system covers only 10 percent of Afro-Colombian
communities, compared to 40 percent of non-black communities;
Whereas the 1991 Colombian Constitution and Law 70 of 1993 granted Afro-
Colombians the legal titles to their ancestral land and the ownership of
the tropical rainforest;
Whereas, however, Afro-Colombians have been forcibly and violently displaced
from their lands;
Whereas the aerial herbicide spraying and fumigation of coca crops has also
resulted in the destruction of the legitimate subsistence crops of Afro-
Colombian communities and a corresponding increase in food instability
and internal displacement amongst Afro-Colombians in territories where
fumigation occurs;
Whereas although Articles 6 and 7 of the International Labor Convention mandates
that United States assistance to Colombia is contingent upon human
rights standards for indigenous communities, Afro-Colombians are not
included in the language for human rights certification conditions;
Whereas the spread of oil palm cultivation is linked to grave human rights
violations, internal displacement, and the killings of Afro-Colombian
leaders and results in the weakening of territorial and environmental
rights of Afro-Colombian communities;
Whereas human rights violations against Afro-Colombians, including bombings,
massacres, and kidnappings go uninvestigated and unaddressed by the
judicial system;
Whereas the deaths and disappearances of Afro-Colombian community activists and
human rights defenders are uninvestigated and leaders within the Afro-
Colombian communities continue to endure death threats and are
specifically targeted by left-wing guerillas and right-wing
paramilitaries;
Whereas Colombia's paramilitary demobilization process has led to continued
displacement, human rights violations, and armed territorial disputes in
Afro-Colombian communities;
Whereas Afro-Colombians suffer disproportionately from extrajudicial executions,
massacres, death threats, disappearances, displacements, and forced
conscription;
Whereas violent terrorist attacks continue to occur at an alarming rate in
Buenaventura, a city with a majority Afro-Colombian population,
resulting in the frequent loss of innocent civilians and making that
city one of the most dangerous in Colombia;
Whereas in 2002 in Bojaya, Choco, 119 unarmed Afro-Colombian civilians--
including 45 children--who had taken refuge in a church were massacred,
as they were caught in the crossfire between the Revolutionary Armed
Forces of Colombia (FARC) and United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia
(AUC) paramilitaries;
Whereas following the massacre in 2002, civilians suffer greatly due to
terrorist attacks in Buenaventura, as the FARC continues to commit
violent acts against Afro-Colombians; and
Whereas, although persons of African descent have made significant achievements
in education, employment, economic, political, and social spheres in
Latin America, the vast majority are marginalized: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) recognizes and honors Afro-Colombians for their
contributions to the economic, social, and cultural fabric of
Colombia;
(2) calls upon the Government of Colombia to take measures
to combat racial discrimination, human rights violations, and
condemn all attacks and forms of racial discrimination against
Afro-Colombians;
(3) urges the Government of Colombia to demand politicians
linked to para-politics scandals are investigated and brought
to justice;
(4) urges the Government of Colombia to develop and
implement a policy that ensures the proper execution of
assistance programs designated for Afro-Colombians and
internally displaced communities; and
(5) encourages the United States Government to ensure that
the previous consultation mechanism with Afro-Colombians and
marginalized groups is applied in the negotiation for a free
trade agreement and the implementation of Plan Colombia.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.
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