The International Office for Human Rights Action on Colombia

Business and Human Rights

Trade Agreement EU-Colombia, Perú, Ecuador: minimal positive impact on Human and Labour Rights, Peace and Environment in Colombia

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Report elaborated by Oidhaco in collaboration with Catapa for the evaluation by the EU Commission of the Trade Agreement.

Concerns have been raised by civil society organisations about the negotiation process for the Trade Agreement between the European Union, Colombia and Peru and its approval in the European Council and European Parliament. These organisations questioned the idea of signing a Trade Agreement with two countries with a history of human rights violations. In Colombia, the extent of the extrajudicial killing of civilians committed by the armed forces was just coming to light. Most of these killings were committed between 2002 and 2008, encouraged by State policies, leaving between 2,000 and 10,000 civilians dead. Moreover, it had only recently come to light that the state intelligence services (DAS) had been spying for years on human rights defenders, journalists, high court magistrates, members of the Colombian Congress, trade unionists and that, in some cases, the information obtained was used to commit assassinations of these people in coordination with paramilitary groups. There had also been reports of high murder rates against trade unionists: from 1973 to 2013, 3,095 trade unionists had been murdered in Colombia  and thousands had suffered other attacks, such as threats, enforced disappearance, etc. In the first decade of the 2000s, 5,664,952 victims of the armed conflict were registered, more than half of the total victims (1981-2020), according to the Single Registry of Victims (Registro Único de Víctimas). Most of these are people who have been forcibly displaced. This is in the context in which the Trade Agreement with Colombia was negotiated.

Our solidarity is universal.

We are deeply concerned about all victims of armed conflict, repression and violence around the world — from Sudan to Syria, including the persecution of the Rohingya and so many other crises that often receive less international attention than they deserve. Each of these situations calls for solidarity, remembrance, justice and action.

However, we have decided to specifically highlight the message ‘Stop Genocide in Palestine’ because what is happening in Palestine represents not only a human tragedy of enormous magnitude, but also a direct challenge to the fundamental principles of international humanitarian law and to the rules-based international system itself. The indifference and complicity of much of the international community in the face of the apartheid regime imposed by the Israeli government on the Palestinian people represent one of the greatest moral and political contradictions of our time.

The persistent violation of essential norms — such as the protection of the civilian population, the prohibition of collective punishment and respect for proportionality in the use of force — not only has devastating consequences for the Palestinian population, but also erodes the global mechanisms designed to limit the power of states and prevent abuses.

When these rules are repeatedly breached without any effective consequences, the framework that protects all populations in conflict situations, anywhere in the world, is weakened. Therefore, speaking out in this case does not mean ignoring other forms of suffering, but rather emphasising the urgency of defending an international order which, if it collapses, leaves everyone in a more vulnerable position.

Drawing attention to this situation is, therefore, an act consistent with the universal values we uphold: the protection of life, human dignity and respect for international law, without exception.

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