User:Joebenfield

Justice for Colombia
Justice for Colombia (JFC) is a human rights NGO based in London. It was established by the British trade union movement and its founding conference was held in March 2003 at Congress House, the headquarters of the British Trades Union Congress (TUC).

The organization works to raise awareness of the human rights situation in Colombia with a particular emphasis on the rights of trade unionists (Colombia is the most dangerous place in the world to be a trade union member) and other civil society activists such as human rights advocates, community campaigners, and indigenous and Afro-Colombian leaders.

JFC takes regular delegations of politicians, union leaders, lawyers, journalists, etc, from Europe to Colombia so they can see the situation on the ground for themselves and arranges frequent visits of Colombian trade unionists and civil society leaders to Europe to engage in speaking tours, lobbying of policy makers, etc.

Justice for Colombia runs several campaigns. Including the campaign to free Colombia’s political prisoners, another to end UK military assistance to the Colombian armed forces and a general trade union rights campaign that calls for the lives of trade union activists to be respected in Colombia and for those that attack them to be brought to justice.

JFC also coordinates the pan-European campaign against the signing of a Free Trade Agreement between the European Union and Colombia until the human rights situation there improves dramatically.

Justice for Colombia works closely with the Parliamentary Friends of Colombia group in the British Parliament which is made up of over 60 Members of Parliament with an interest in Colombia.

The President of Justice for Colombia is Brendan Barber, the General Secretary of the TUC. The Chair of the management committee is Jeremy Dear, the General Secretary of the National Union of Journalists.

Political Impact
Justice for Colombia has achieved significant success in its campaigns, with the release of several political prisoners. As a result, of 23 prisoners campaigned for, 18 have been freed. The FCO and the British Embassy in Bogota have been obliged to take human rights into account in their dealings with the Colombian authorities. JFC has also assisted with legal costs, and helped develop the human rights departments of several Colombian trade unions. It has also made Colombia the biggest international campaign within the British trade union movement, and has heightened awareness of the human rights situation in Colombia in the European Parliament. As a result of these successes JFC has been the target of unfounded accusations from members of the Colombian government, and from government-supporting Colombian media.

Campaigns
Justice for Colombia runs four main campaigns.

1.The political prisoners campaign is aimed at securing the release of those being held in Colombian jails for political reasons. These include trade unionists, student activists, community and indigenous leaders, human rights defenders and academics. The campaign currently focuses upon five prisoners, Liliany Obando, Carmelo Agamez Berrío, Dr Miguel Angel Beltran Villegas, Rosalba Gaviria Toro and David Ravelo.

2.The campaign to end violence against trade unionists. Over 2,500 trade unionists have been murdered in Colombia in the past 20 years, more than in the rest of the world combined. Paramilitary forces have carried out most of the killings, although the State intelligence service (DAS), the police and the armed forces have also been implicated in several killings and in the drawing up of hit lists of trade unionists.

3.The military aid campaign. Given the evidence of State security force's involvement in the repression of trade unionists and other members of civil society and the political opposition, as well as evidence of systemic links between security forces and paramilitaries, JFC is campaigning to end British military aid to Colombia on the basis that Colombian military units receiving this assistance have been involved in the torture and murder. According to some media reports Britain has also provided aid and equipment to the DAS secret police, which has directly assisted in the killings of trade unionists as noted above. The DAS has also been involved in espionage and intimidation against journalists, members of the political opposition and human rights activists, possibly using equipment provided by the British to carry out these activities. Although the British government announced that it was ending military aid to Colombia in 2009, this only referred to

4.The campaign to block the proposed Free Trade Agreement between the European Union and Colombia. With the US-Colombian Free Trade Agreement stalled in Congress due to concerns over human rights in Colombia, JFC - along with the European trade union movement - is campaigning for the European Union to link the approval of its FTA with Colombia to human rights improvements. This campaign is backed by the Colombian CUT trade union federation as well as by the ETUC.

List of Affiliated Organisations
TUC, Scottish TUC, Unite the Union, GMB, SIPTU, Irish CTU, GFTU, USDAW, PCS, NUT, CWU, UCATT, ATL, UCU, Prospect, RMT, Community, EIS, FBU, NIPSA, POA, CSP, NUJ, ACCORD, TSSA, BECTU, BFAWU, The Society of Radiographers, ASLEF, NAUTILUS, URTU, SU, NAPO, The Society of Chiropodists and Podiatrists, Advance, Unity, UCAC, PFA, NUM, The Institute of Employment Rights, Walker Smith Way Solicitors, OH Parsons Solicitors, Thompsons Solicitors, NUS