The UN Office for Human Rights in Colombia presented its annual report on Wednesday, once again highlighting an increase in violence, such as massacres, which numbered 98 in 2023, and the growth of armed groups despite advancements in peace negotiations and a greater focus on human rights in government policies.
According to the annual report from the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, in 2023, this entity was able to verify six more massacres than in 2022, resulting in 320 victims, and 105 murders of human rights defenders (eleven fewer than the previous year).
“Our assessment of the situation in 2023 is concerning because despite a decrease in some violence indicators, the territorial expansion and violent social and territorial control strategies of non-state armed groups and criminal organizations with serious consequences for human rights continue,” explained Juliette de Rivero, the office’s representative in Colombia.
While acknowledging steps taken by the current Colombian government toward human rights and efforts to reach the most neglected areas with social policies, the UN Office appreciated “important decisions made by the government to combat inequality,” including recognizing peasants as rights-holders and measures to enable access to university for those with fewer resources.
However, the violence persists, with the situation in regions either not improving or worsening. According to the UN Human Rights Violence Impact Index, violence now affects 206 municipalities in 28 of the country’s 32 departments, up from 156 municipalities in 2021.
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“The consolidation of power by groups in some territories represents a risk to governance in Colombia and to the protection of the human rights of the population,” said the representative.
Tame, in the Arauca department bordering Venezuela, has the highest violence index, and the UN office is also deeply concerned about the situation of the Nasa indigenous people in Cauca (southwest), among other communities.
Moreover, 46 people with political leadership, including 11 candidates, were assassinated last year during municipal and departmental elections.
The UN Office also registered 53 cases of gender-based violence, including sexual violence and cases of human trafficking for sexual exploitation against girls.
Regarding the recruitment, use, or involvement of children in the armed conflict, the UN verified 134 cases (86 boys, 42 girls, and 6 without confirmed gender) by non-state armed groups and criminal organizations, more than half of whom were indigenous.
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In light of these findings, the UN recommended “strengthening governance and the rule of law in territories given the worrying insecurity situation” through the implementation of new security, dismantlement, and drug policies.
Furthermore, it emphasized the importance of maintaining focus on the government’s responsibility to ensure security in regions and respond to attacks or human rights violations even while negotiating with armed groups.
“We believe that territorial peace dialogues should aim to strengthen the comprehensive presence of the state and the transformation of territories, with the active participation of grassroots organizational processes and local and ethnic authorities,” concluded De Rivero.
The former president of the United States Bill Clinton was hospitalized in Washington after “develoting a fever”
Former US President Bill Clinton (1993-2001) was hospitalized from Washington to undergo medical tests after “developing fever,” his office reported in a message on social networks.
Clinton, 78, was admitted to the Georgetown University Medical Center in the US capital, Angel Ureña, who served as Clinton’s deputy chief of staff, explained on his X account.
“The former president is still in good spirits and is deeply grateful for the excellent attention he is receiving,” the message deepened.
In 2004, the former president underwent quadruple bahaspas heart surgery and in 2010 he underwent another surgery related to his cardiovascular problems.
The former Democratic leader was hospitalized in 2021 in California for an infection that spread to his bloodstream.
Clinton is one of the four former presidents of the United States who are still alive, along with Donald Trump (2017-2021), Barack Obama (2009-2017), George W. Bush (2001-2009) and Jimmy Carter (1977-1981).
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The latter is, at 100 years old, the longest-serving president in the history of the United States.
Lula calls for reconciliation and dialogue in his Christmas message
The President of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, made this Monday a call for reconciliation, hope and joint work to build a more just and supportive country, in his annual Christmas message.
“This is the time to renew our hope. Hope in a fairer country. A Brazil without hunger, where every woman and every man has a decent job and time to see their children grow up,” Lula said.
In a brief message broadcast live on television, radio and social networks, Lula said that the basis of everything his Government does is in the dialogue and joint work it carries out with civil society and regional governments, “in the harmony” between the Executive, the Legislative and the Judiciary and in the “uncompromising” defense of democracy.
“We still have huge challenges ahead of us. But today Brazil has a strong economy, which continues to grow. An efficient government, which invests where it matters most: in the quality of life of the Brazilian population,” emphasized the Brazilian president in reference to the forecast that the country will end the year with a growth of 3.5%, above the 3.2% recorded in 2023.
The Brazilian president, however, stressed that although the fruits of what was sown in his first two years of management is already beginning to be harvested, “there is still much to do” and “we must continue to sow.”
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In 2025 “we will redouble our efforts for sowing. And may the harvest be increasingly generous,” he said.
In a country still politically polarized, Lula took the opportunity to defend reconciliation between the brothers and that families can celebrate Christmas together.
With the Panama hat that he has been using to hide the wounds of his recent surgery, the progressive leader also thanked the messages of affection and solidarity he received from the Brazilian population.
“Thanks to this chain of solidarity I am even more firm and strong to continue making Brazil work,” he said.
The driver involved in the accident with 41 dead is handed over to the Brazilian police
The driver of the truck loaded with rocks that allegedly caused the multiple accident in which 41 people died in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais turned himself in to the regional police on Monday, the federal government news agency reported.
The man, who had been a fugitive since the accident that occurred in the early hours of Saturday, presented himself with a lawyer at the police station of the municipality of Teófilo Otoni, the rural area where the tragedy unfloded, in order to testify.
The regional police said on Sunday at a press conference that the suspect’s driver’s license was requisitioned in 2022 after not wanting to undergo a breathalyzer test.
In addition, he said that, based on a preliminary investigation, the truck had an “excess load”, so the driver could face criminal charges.
The main line of investigation on the accident is that one of the granite blocks transported by the truck came off and collided with the bus, which was traveling in the opposite direction with 45 people on board.
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The impact caused a large fire that took hours to extinguish, which is why the corpses are charred and difficult to identify.
After that first collision, another vehicle behind collided with the truck and its three occupants recorded serious injuries, according to the Fire Department.
The accident, which occurred in a curved section on the BR 116 federal highway, is one of the worst road tragedies in Brazil.
