“As a collective, we want to turn our pain into rights” – Yanette Bautista of the “Nydia Erika Bautista” Foundation

Published by Brent Patterson on October 23, 2024October 23, 2024

Today, October 23, the National Day of Recognition of Women Searchers of Victims of Forced Disappearance is commemorated in Colombia.

On this day, Amnesty International has amplified the voice of Yanette Bautista, whose sister Nydia was forcibly disappeared in 1987.

A key excerpt from Yanette’s testimony in Rolling Stone magazine notes:

“When I finally returned to Colombia [from exile] in 2007, I started my own organization. …I wanted to empower families to search for their loved ones, so we started the Foundation in my living room, with a small group of families.

Our collective, Fundación Nydia Erika Bautista, is designed for women to help each other. There are no hierarchies. It is an exchange of knowledge. We provide legal support, document stories, and do advocacy. We have a leadership school to empower women seekers in different parts of the country. We work in eight regions of Colombia, and we support 519 cases.

Our collective is mainly made up of women; Our research has revealed that 95% of those searching for loved ones are women, mothers, sisters, and wives.

As a collective, we want to turn our pain into rights. That is why we drafted a bill, to empower women who are searching for victims of enforced disappearance and to promote the rights of those women. The law came into force in 2024. However, our next task is to ensure that it is implemented and realized.”

The full article can be read at “Me quité los tacones, y me puse los zapatos para empezar a buscar” (Rolling Stone en Español, October 23, 2024).

The Peace Brigades International-Colombia Project has been accompanying the “Nydia Erika Bautista” Foundation (FNEB) occasionally from 2007 and in full since 2016.

Photo: October 19, 2022, the day the Bill was filed.

Photo: April 4, 2024, the day the Comprehensive Law for the Protection of the Rights of Women Searchers was approved.

Amnistía Internacional Américas tweet: “#23OCT is the national day of #MujeresBuscadoras [Women Searchers] in #Colombia , an achievement of #SociedadCivil [Civil Society] led by @nydia_erika and searchers from all over the country, for the rights of those who decided to dedicate their lives to searching for their loved ones who are victims of #DesapariciónForzada [Enforced Disappearance].”