Deshila is a 39 year-old woman
with 4 children, who has been
displaced since 2001.
An outspoken activist and
community leader, she was
threatened by armed groups
and had to abandon her
home in rural Colombia.

Those who are brave enough to speak out against abuse and intimidation too often face a complete lack of government protection. As a result, they find themselves at an even greater risk of violence by armed groups.

"Finally we arrived in San Pablo, placing ourselves at the mercy of God, without any plan for how we would survive...We had no idea how to claim rights due to us because of our displacement. Later we heard of the Network of Solidarity, the organization that is supposed to distribute government funds for the displaced. Our family has not received any type of government assistance or support. Now we know that we have a Constitution that says people like us are supposed to get benefits and be protected by the government, but this assistance only comes if you put yourselves at the mercy of the armed groups. You cannot trust the government officials who take the denouncements not to turn your names over to the very groups you are fleeing." — Juana

"I am still being persecuted by various groups, they threaten me because of the denouncements I made against them in the special notary's office. But I really don't understand why the paramilitaries still exist—why the government will do nothing to combat them." — Deshila

Cristian is a 34 year-old man
with 3 children. He has been
displaced since early 2005.

Colombia's legislature passed a Justice and Peace law, supposedly intended to demobilize the paramilitaries. Unfortunately, as implemented, the law has allowed for impunity and rearmament of paramilitary groups under new names. One of the disturbing outcomes of the law is that several of the paramilitary units have reformed into private security companies, giving them the ability to legally "police," harass, "tax" and terrorize local populations.

"These demobilized paramilitaries are not demobilized at all! They control neighborhoods in town, and the national police let them. They tax the residents and tax single mothers more. They put marks on the doors of single mothers. They say it is to protect us, but you know why they do it: so they know us in the night." — Resident of Barrancabermeja

Not surprisingly to those familiar with the conflict, there have been increased accusations of government collaboration with paramilitary leaders. President Uribe's political history while he was governor of the Antioquia province of Colombia—where he openly supplied arms in his convivencia program to members of the citizenry who subsequently established paramilitary squads—has fueled the impression of cooperation between the federal government and paramilitary groups.

Julia, 31, is married with
6 children. She was displaced
4 years ago and has yet
to receive any government aid.
Without other means to support
her family, Julia was forced
into coca cultivation.

“I had seen the man before and I knew he worked with one of the private security companies that the government lets police the neighborhoods. He comes regularly to the homes to tax us. This is a legalized paramilitary group, known as Convivir, now demobilized, that receives arms and power from the government." — Cristian

U.S. Influence

Under Plan Colombia, the United States gives more than 700 million dollars a year in aid to Colombia, 80 percent of which is earmarked for the Colombian military—a troubled institution, embroiled in human rights scandals and accused of funneling funds and weapons into the hands of paramilitaries. Meanwhile human rights and rural development programs, urgently needed to stem the tide of violence and drugs, are poorly funded and ineffective.