An informative bulletin on colombian news and th European Union association agreement

No. 21 Bogotá DC, Colombia, 13 October 2011

Bogotá DC, Colombia, 22 September 2011 EDITORIAL Stock market crisis indicates that liberalization is the wrong path While the Colombian government enthusiastically announced the progress made in the translation of the Multiparty Agreement with the European Union, the economic model that these agreements entrench is continuing to show signs of exhaustion and crisis. The fall of the European and Asian stock markets shows how the model continues to have high costs for the rights and welfare (...)

Bogotá DC, Colombia, 27 June 2011 EDITORIAL Non-binding mechanisms for transnational companies do not protect Human Rights The Working Group on Transnational Companies within the bi-regional network of social organizations called Enlazando Alternativas criticized the United Nation’s Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR) decision to accept a report that reduces transnational companies’ responsibility for human rights violations. The report was prepared by John Ruggie, the UN’s Special (...)

Bogotá DC, Colombia, 9 June 2011 EDITORIAL Human rights violations continue and have increased, says OIDHACO The International Office for Human Rights Action on Colombia (OIDHACO, from its Spanish name) presented an evaluation of Juan Manuel Santos’ first 300 days in office. The report indicates that not only have human rights violations not ceased during his administration, in some cases they have actually increased. OIDHACO asks the European Union to demand true progress in human rights, (...)

Bogota DC, Colombia, May 19, 2011 EDITORIAL Colombian organizations insist on participation in the debate on the Multiparty Agreement The European Union’s Delegation in Colombia, along with the Association of European Chambers of Commerce and Industry in Colombia, EUROCHAMBRES, and the nationally circulated magazine Semana, convoked the forum “Betting on Colombia: the Trade Agreement with the European Union in the final stretch,” held on May 10. Both the EU Delegation and the Colombian (...)

Bogotá DC, Colombia, 25 March 2011 EDITORIAL Civil Society calls on the prioritization of human rights and learning from the lessons from the crisis With the support of MEPs Raúl Romeva, Helmut Scholz and Richard Howitt, diverse social organizations from Latin America and Europe last week presented in the European Parliament their Manifest, “No More injustices and inequalities.” The Manifest explains the reasons for their opposition to the ratification of the Agreements the European Union (...)

Bogotá DC, Colombia, March 8, 2011 EDITORIAL Andean Parliament asks Greystar to desist from seeking environmental license for mine in páramo Fourteen members of the Andean Parliament, the legislative body of the Andean Community of Nations (CAN in Spanish), released last week a statement asking the Canadian mining company Greystar to desist from its intention to mine gold and other minerals in the Santurbán Páramo region. Páramos are unique high-elevation tropical ecosystems; the Santurbán (...)

Bogotá DC, Colombia, 24 February 2011 EDITORIAL Political profile of Vice President Angelino Garzón Having been a unionist and a member of a leftist party, Vice President Angelino Garzón has been put in charge of managing the relationships with social organizations and has been the international spokesperson on human rights for the Juan Manuel Santos administration. But his recent history reveals a profile that tends more towards concealing Colombia’s social realities than truly making real (...)

Bogotá DC, Colombia, February 12, 2011 EDITORIAL Hungary stresses Human Rights as a priority in EU trade negotiations The Hungarian government, which has assumed the European Union presidency for six months, stated that human rights are a priority for the European Union’s trade relations. The Hungarian Foreign Minister János Martonyi, when questioned about the Multiparty Agreement signed with Colombia and Peru, told the European Parliament trade committee that the human rights situation (...)

EDITORIAL Sarkozy moves forward commitment to Colombia, and ignores human rights crisis During Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos’ recent visit to France, President Nicolas Sarkozy and President Santos signed a statement defining the guidelines of the countries’ bilateral relationship. Despite the fact that the EU countries’ national parliaments and the European Parliament have not yet ratified the Multiparty Agreement, Sarkozy committed to supporting the conversion of the Colombian (...)