URGENT – We are sending this critical update and call for support given signs the Colombian government is preparing to violently evict the U’wa indigenous people from their own territory. Amazon Watch is raising funds to bring two U’wa leaders (seen in this video) to the United States in mid-May so they can communicate their situation to the world in their own voice. They will attend the UN’s annual meeting of indigenous peoples in New York City and then carry out important advocacy meetings in Washington, DC. But we need your help to get them here!

A Tragedy Foretold?
Colombia’s U’wa People Facing Violent Eviction

The last time Colombian armed forces evicted an U’wa protest, it ended in tragedy. On February 11th, 2000, three indigenous children drowned in the Cubogón River as they fled helicopter-bound National Police. The U’wa were peacefully blocking a road and stopping materials for an oil exploration project, not miles from where they are currently camped out in La China.

This situation is at risk of repeating itself once again. Though the U’wa held high-level talks last Friday with the Colombian government, the Minister of Energy and Mines, Amylkar Acosta, stated this morning in a Caracol Radio interview that the government might declare a State of Emergency given that the shut-down of the Caño Limón pipeline is causing significant economic losses. Some 2.5 million barrels of oil have not been exported since the pipeline was bombed on March 25th, resulting in an estimated $8 million in daily revenue losses for the government.

Watch the video and read the rest here »