MP deplores death threats against Colombian MP
MP deplores death threats against Colombian MP
Wednesday, 12 February, 2014 - 14:03
President of Parliamentarians for Global Action Ross Robertson has expressed his concern and condemnation of the death threats against a well-known Colombian parliamentarian.
"Rep. Ivan Cepeda is a well respected Colombian MP and human rights defender, and the threats against him, as well as against Bogota Mayor Gustavo Petro and human rights defender Dr. Alirio Uribe Muñoz, are of deep concern," said Ross Robertson.
"Parliamentarians for Global Action (PGA) deplores the information received regarding the ‘Andromeda operation’ which allowed illegal interceptions of communications of Rep. Ivan Cepeda, along with several persons involved in the Colombian peace negotiations taking place in Cuba between the government and the FARC.
"These alleged activities constitute a threat to the peace process, which needs to be embraced by all actors in order for it to be stable and durable as recognised by the participants in the PGA Annual Forum, held on 9-10 December 2013 in the Parliament of Colombia.
"Death threats to human rights defenders, and in particular to parliamentarians who are democratically-elected representatives of the people, are a threat to freedom and democracy which must be vigorously rejected by all and treated with the utmost urgency by national authorities," said Ross Robertson.
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http://www.voxy.co.nz/politics/mp-deplores-death-threats-against-colombian-mp/5/181293
= new reply since forum marked as read
Colombia: Ivan Cepeda's Struggle Against History
Published September 4, 2013
Stephen Franklin, for the Pulitzer Center
~snip~
Like his father, his human rights work has exposed him to threats and some lengthy stretches of forced exile. And like his father, he has become an elected politician. He is a member of Colombia’s Congress, one of a small number of leftist politicians.
When he speaks about human rights violations, he goes back to an issue that haunts the history of his father’s death.
It’s the network that allegedly linked right-wing paramilitaries to the armed forces and, ultimately, to Colombian politicians and elite during the decades of violence. Two army sergeants were convicted in his father’s death, and Cepeda has long searched for the masterminds behind the killing.
The Inter-American Court of Human Rights in May 2010 faulted the Colombian government for failing to protect Manuel Cepeda and strongly criticized it for not carrying out a full investigation of his murder. “It can be established that other members of the Army and members of one or several paramilitary groups took part in the planning and execution of the murder,” the court said.
The role of the right-wing militias and the criminal groups that they have reportedly spawned is a major concern for Cepeda. It’s the network that allegedly linked right-wing paramilitaries to the armed forces and, ultimately, to Colombian politicians and elite during the decades of violence. Two army sergeants were convicted in his father’s death, and Cepeda has long searched for the masterminds behind the killing.
The Inter-American Court of Human Rights in May 2010 faulted the Colombian government for failing to protect Manuel Cepeda and strongly criticized it for not carrying out a full investigation of his murder. “It can be established that other members of the Army and members of one or several paramilitary groups took part in the planning and execution of the murder,” the court said.
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http://www.source.ly/10Tje#.UvsucGePJMs