PBI-Colombia accompanies CCALCP lawyers’ collective at meeting with women’s organizations and EU Delegation

On November 8, PBI-Colombia tweeted: “Dialogue with @UEenColombiain [the Delegation of the European Union in Colombia] in Bucaramanga with women who build #peace from territory such as @ccalcp [the Luis Carlos Pérez Collective Lawyers Corporation]. International support for women #human rights defenders who have important proposals to stop #violence including the gender approach is key.”

Gilles Bertrand, the European Union ambassador to Colombia, also tweeted: “Women’s organizations from #Santander explained to me the department’s challenges regarding gender equality: combating gender-based violence, promoting participation in politics and promoting peace activities in neighborhoods affected by illicit economies. #WeDefendLife.”

The Guardian has previously reported: “The all-female group of lawyers provides legal representation to small-scale farmers and indigenous communities affected by the armed conflict in Colombia. Their work includes defending displaced peoples and victims of state crime, but also defending environmental rights, including fighting mining companies that seek to extract resources, often at the expense of the local water supply and the surrounding environment.”

And PBI-Colombia has noted: “Between 2005 and 2016, CCALCP members were subjected to forty-three threats and other security incidents, including physical assaults, false accusations, harassment, unlawful interception of communications, and information theft. According to Julia Figueroa, the systematic attacks that CCALCP members have had to face are specifically related to the fact that they are women.”

PBI-Colombia has been accompanying CCALCP since 2006.