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Colombia: Growing insecurity forcing indigenous flight in north-east

Briefing Notes, 27 January 2009

This is a summary of what was said by UNHCR spokesperson Ron Redmond – to whom quoted text may be attributed – at the press briefing, on 27 January 2009, at the Palais des Nations in Geneva.

UNHCR is concerned at the rise in violence and growing insecurity forcing local indigenous populations to flee Colombia's north-eastern department of La Guajira.

In one of the latest incidents this month, a group of Wayúu indigenous people fled across the border to take refuge in Venezuela after being attacked on their collective territory in La Guajira. The attack was carried out by armed men who burned down their houses and threatened to kill their leader.

UNHCR Venezuela reports that 86 Wayúu people have arrived in the border state of Zulia in the past two weeks fleeing from violence inside Colombia. It is possible that more people have crossed the border in search of protection and not made their presence known, because they fear retaliation by their persecutors.

The newcomers arrived in Venezuela in three small groups after crossing the desert of La Guajira. A small baby was badly hurt when she fell during the journey and was taken to hospital suffering from a brain injury. The families left all their possessions behind in Colombia. UNHCR Venezuela is coordinating with local and national authorities to provide food, clothes and hammocks to these families. The newcomers also say a larger group of people, also fleeing the attacks, are still inside Colombia and hiding in the desert in an attempt to find safety.

This latest border-crossing takes place within a context of growing violence in the department of La Guajira, as documented by human right monitors, over the past few months. They warn of a rise in selective murders, death threats, intimidation and extortion, as well as of the increased presence of re-organized illegal armed groups in the region.

The violence is putting huge pressure on the Wayúu people and other local indigenous groups – including the Wayúu, the Arhuaco, the Kogui and the Wiva – who together make up 45 percent of the department's population (around 626,000 people live in La Guajira). The Wayúu are one of the largest indigenous groups in the region, with around 150,000 Wayúu on the Colombian side and 160,000 in Venezuela.

In Colombia, the Wayúu people of La Guajira have long been vulnerable to violence and forced displacement linked to the presence of various irregular and illegal armed groups. In the past few months, Wayúu leaders and social organizations have suffered an increased number of targeted killings, threats and intimidation. UNHCR is calling on the authorities to take adequate protective and preventive measures to protect indigenous people from violence and forced displacement.

There are a total of some 1 million indigenous people in Colombia, divided into 80 different groups. More than 27 of these groups count less than 500 members and are considered at risk of extinction, often as a result of violence and forced displacement. Indigenous groups tend to suffer disproportionately during forced displacement because of their strong social, cultural and economic links to their lands. Many of these groups live on collective territory, with their own authority and autonomy, as recognized under Colombian Law. They often come under enormous pressure to abandon their lands, which are then used by various groups for economic exploitation, illegal trade or strategic control of territory.

The department of La Guajira is located at the north-eastern end of Colombia and shares a border with Venezuela. Because of its remoteness and strategic location on the Caribbean Coast, it has long been a centre for various irregular armed groups, as well as criminal groups controlling the illegal drug trade. According to official figures (Acción Social), more than 50,000 people have been forced to flee the region as a result of violence.

UNHCR has 12 offices in Colombia, where it works to support the state's efforts to assist a large population of internally displaced people, and four offices in Venezuela to assist hundreds of thousands of refugees, most of them unregistered, from Colombia.

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There are about a million indigenous people in Colombia. They belong to 80 different groups and make up one of the world's most diverse indigenous heritages. But the internal armed conflict is taking its toll on them.

Like many Colombians, indigenous people often have no choice but to flee their lands to escape violence. Forced displacement is especially tragic for them because they have extremely strong links to their ancestral lands. Often their economic, social and cultural survival depends on keeping these links alive.

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