Creating Peace and Finding Justice in Colombia

Creating Peace and Finding Justice in Colombia

HEARING
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 24, 2013
9.30 AM
HVC-210
This hearing will take place at 9.30 AM on 10/24/2013, in HVC-210.
The hearing is open to members of Congress, congressional staff, the media and the interested public.

DATE Thursday, October 24, 2013
TIME 9.30 AM
LOCATION HVC-210
BACKGROUND As Colombian and international observers look with hope to the on-going peace negotiations between the Colombian government and Colombia’s largest guerrilla organization, a number of human rights issues remain critical. The Labor Action Plan, which aimed to provide adequate protection of workers’ rights in Colombia, faces many challenges in its implementation and has not prevented labor activists from becoming targets of intimidation and deadly attacks. Under President Santos’s signature Law on Victims’ Rights and Land Restitution, many of Colombia’s internally displaced are trying to reclaim their land and face serious threats and killings for their activities. And as peace negotiations move forward, Colombia struggles to find an effective approach to transitional justice. Many are now concerned that concessions made at the negotiating table may leave the victims of fifty years of violent conflict without justice but with the burden of reconciliation.

This hearing will provide an update on the ongoing peace negotiations and an overview of continuing human rights challenges. More specifically, the hearing will address the status of labor rights, obstacles to land restitution efforts, and recommendations on effective mechanisms for transitional justice. It will also highlight particular challenges faced by Colombia’s indigenous population and Afro-Colombian communities.

WITNESS LIST Panel I:

• William Duncan, Director of Andean Affairs, Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs, U.S. Department of State

Panel II:
• Adam Isacson, Senior Associate for Regional Security Policy, Washington Office on Latin America
• Dr. Virginia M. Bouvier, Senior Program Officer for Latin America, United States Institute of Peace

Panel III:
• Celeste Drake, Trade and Globalization Policy Specialist, The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO)
• Max Schoening, Colombia Researcher, Human Rights Watch
• Liliana Ávila, Human Rights Attorney, Inter-Church Justice and Peace Commission
• Jomary Ortegón, Human Rights Attorney, Jose Alvear Restrepo Collective of Lawyers

NOTEThe live stream will be available here: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/hclive19
If you have any questions, please contact the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission at 202-225-3599 or tlhrc@mail.house.gov
James P. McGovern
Co-Chair, TLHRC
Frank R. Wolf
Co-Chair, TLHRC