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Are the Canadian-made Huron APCs sold to the National Police in Colombia being used against the National Strike?

By
Brent Patterson
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Photo by El Tiempo.

As concerns grow about the use of violence by Colombian national police against the ongoing national strike protests, questions are emerging about the possible use of Canadian made vehicles in human rights violations.

In a virtual meeting with Global Affairs Canada and the Embassy of Canada in Colombia yesterday, the Regional Corporation in Defence of Human Rights (CREDHOS) called on Canadian officials to stop military exports to Colombia.

Those exports have included 24 Light Armoured Vehicles (LAVs) manufactured in London, Ontario and sold to the Colombian Army in 2014.

They also include vehicles sold to the Colombian National Police.

On May 20, 2014, Toronto-based INKAS Armoured Vehicles Manufacturing announced a new armoured personnel carrier (APC) highlighting that the company “will supply the first four vehicles to the National Police of Colombia.”

In April 2015, PLANT also reported: “The manufacturer is still building behemoth armoured personnel carriers (APCs). In fact, there’s a tendered order for 26 of its Huron vehicles, at about $450,000 a pop, for the National Police of Columbia.”

That article adds: “The Huron is built on a Kenmore T370 chassis and will be outfitted with a cannon to wrangle unruly rioters with foam, tear gas, dyes and water.”

It then quotes Phillip Daskal, vice-president of sales for the armoured vehicle division at INKAS, who says: “Who would have thought Canadians would be building this stuff?”

It’s not clear where these vehicles have been deployed or how they have been subsequently used, though The Globe and Mail did report in June 2014 that the first four Hurons were “en route to Cartagena.”

This video and this video and this Amnesty International video suggest reason for concern about how the National Police have been using similar armoured vehicles against the national strike protests this past week.

For the Huron vehicles to have been sold to Colombia, an export permit would have been needed from Global Affairs Canada.

For that permit to have been issued, Global Affairs spokesperson Natasha Nystrom has previously stated: “Regional peace and stability, including civil conflict and human rights, as well as the possibility of unauthorized transfer or diversion of the exported goods and technology, are actively considered.”

As Colombian human rights defenders call on the international community to uphold the right to peaceful assembly, we express concern about the report that the Canadian made Hurons exported to Colombia may have been equipped “with a cannon to wrangle unruly rioters with foam, tear gas, dyes and water.”

Photo: One of the first Hurons delivered to the Colombian police.

Have Canadian-made LAVs been deployed on the streets of Colombia during the National Strike?

By
Brent Patterson
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Canada exported 24 LAV III vehicles to Colombia in 2014 despite concerns being raised about the false positives scandal at that time.

Daily national strike/paro nacional protests have gripped Colombia for the past eight days. The Bogota-based organization Tremblores has documented 239 violent interventions by the public forces (the military and national police) within this time frame.

Agence France-Presse now reports: “Cali, Colombia’s third-biggest city and the worst affected by the ongoing unrest, has had soldiers patrolling its streets since last Friday [April 30] on government orders. In Cali alone, 700 soldiers, 500 riot police officers, 1,800 other police and two helicopters have been put into operation.”

The Associated Press also reports that soldiers and army tanks have been seen on the outskirts of Bogota.

Concerned by this escalating situation, Clement Voule, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Association and Peaceful Assembly, has tweeted: “As a general rule, the military should not be used to police assemblies see UNG37.”

Voule adds: “I urge Colombian authorities to ensure that only adequately trained security forces be deployed to facilitate peaceful assembly in Colombia.”

It is in this context that we recall that Canada exported 24 Light Armoured Vehicles (LAVs) to the Colombian Ministry of Defence in 2014.

This media release notes that the Colombian Ministry of Defence awarded a USD$65.3 million contract to the London, Ontario-based General Dynamics Land Systems-Canada for LAV III vehicles for the Colombian Army.

It has also been reported that these LAVs would be armed with the Samson RWS with M2 Browning machine guns or 25 or 30 mm cannons.

The contract was signed through the Canadian Commercial Corporation, a Crown Agency of the Government of Canada.

In July 2015, the Ottawa Citizen reported: “New questions are being raised over the Conservative government’s push to sell arms to developing countries following explosive allegations linking Colombian military officers to the killing of hundreds of civilians during the country’s bloody civil war.”

That article quoted the Colombian ambassador to Canada at that time who stated: “We expect them to be useful for their purpose, which is to protect lives.”

And yet, even at the time of the sale, there were concerns being expressed about the “falsos positivos” controversy in Colombia.

“False positives” refers to innocent people extrajudicially killed by members of the Colombian army, and then falsely labelled as enemy combatants. It is now believed that 6,402 people were murdered by the army in this way between 2002 and 2008.

At the time of the sale to Colombia, Alex Neve, who was then the Secretary General of Amnesty International Canada, commented: “In this deeply troubling context, before approving any sale of military equipment to Colombia, or any country in which we have evidence of serious human rights violations, it is vital the government demonstrate how and why it is confident the weapons transferred will not be used to violate human rights.”

PBI continues to monitor this situation closely.

We echo the statement from PBI-Colombia that: “Social and peaceful protest is a human right, above all, disproportionate repressions cannot be justified against the civilian population, we ask for guarantees and respect for life.”

GDLS file photo of LAV III vehicles in Colombia.

As concerns grow about state violence, are Canadian police providing training to the Colombian police?

By
Brent Patterson
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On February 26, 2021, the PBI-Colombia accompanied organization CREDHOS tweeted: “Day against #BrutalidadPolicial [police brutality] in #Barrancabermeja we demand the dismantling of #ESMAD.” Photo by CREDHOS.

On May 1, the British independent media outlet The Canary reported: “Over recent days, the Colombian national police have killed a number of civilians protesting a proposed tax hike on basic goods. Many more civilians have been injured, and Colombia’s riot police reportedly sexually assaulted a woman.”

The article by independent journalist John McEvoy further notes: “Documents obtained by The Canary can reveal that the UK’s College of Policing has been training Colombian police over the past three years.”

Is there a similar relationship between Canada and Colombia?

On October 30, 2017, the Canadian Press reported on a “bilateral police initiative” between Canada and Colombia.

At that time, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau stated: “This effort will support post-conflict policing efforts in Colombia and will see Canadian police providing training, capacity building and strategic advice to our Colombian friends.”

Given the timing of that announcement, this police training would likely have taken place in 2018 coinciding with UK College of Police training.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) has also noted that they maintain a “liaison officer” in Bogota. The RCMP says their role is to “act as the link between law enforcement agencies in Canada and in their host country.”

There does not appear to be more publicly available about the relationship between Canada and the Colombian police, but we will look more into this. (We can add though that the Toronto-based firm INKAS sold 4 Huron armoured vehicles – similar to the model in the photo below – to the National Police of Colombia in 2014.)

The Bogota-based NGO Temblores has documented that Colombian public forces have committed 639 homicides between 2017 and 2019. That includes 289 killings by Colombian Police along with killings by the Armed Forces and the intelligence services.

Temblores has also noted in December 2019 that at least 34 people have been killed by Colombia’s Mobile Anti-Disturbance Squadron (ESMAD) since it was first established in February 2019. Justice for Colombia has further noted with concern: “At least nine peasant farmers have been killed by the ESMAD during rural protests over state abandonment, human rights and underdevelopment.”

And referencing the 14 people killed in September 2020 following the police killing of Javier Ordonez, dhColombia tweeted: “It is necessary to disarm the [CAI/police sub-stations] of torture and sexual violence that they have become.”

The full article by John McEvoy in The Canary can be read at: Colombian police are killing civilians. British police are training them.

“I regret to inform the ESMAD that with my left eye I still see a better future for my country.”

The Toronto company INKAS sold four Huron armoured personnel carriers to the Colombian police in 2014. As seen in this video and this video, there are concerns about how the police are using armoured vehicles against National Strike protests.

PBI-Honduras accompanies ASODEBICOQ as communities resist second hydroelectric dam on the Cuyagual River

By
Brent Patterson
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On May 6, PBI-Honduras posted: “We were recently in the Santa Barbara Department, accompanying ASODEBICOQ.”

ASODEBICOQ refers to the Association for the Defense of Common Goods of Quimistán (which is a municipality in the department of Santa Bárbara).

PBI-Honduras further notes: “We accompany communities in the fight for their rights and in resistance for the Cuyagual River, which has been privatized and the hydroelectric company refuses to deliver on its promises. We also accompany the General Assembly process of that organization.”

In February 2019, Radio Progreso reported that the department of Santa Bárbara is “threatened by more than 15 hydroelectric projects and 23 concessions for mining. …Despite strong rejection by the population, they currently intend to build a second hydroelectric dam also on the Cuyagual River.”

Kevin Ramírez Vásquez, a co-founder of ASODEBICOQ, has commented: “The impact the Cuyagual project has had is the pollution of the rivers from where they explode dynamite, explode bombs to loosen rocks and fell deeply-rooted trees.”

“The poison this bomb makes ends up in the freshwater springs, in the river, and it pollutes the river where it kills the animals, the fish, the water-snails.”

“The inhabitants of communities such as San Felipe and Santa Lucia can’t access the rivers because they are privatized. The owners are the businessmen, the owners of the dam. They have militarized the area, installed police posts…”

“We know that for defending our territory, defending the rivers, which are the veins of our Mother Earth, the first thing that comes are the threats. …We know that deaths may await us because they send soldiers when we make blockades or take to the streets.”

He has also stated: “We couldn’t organize demonstrations and occupations before, but since PBI has been supporting us, we have been able to do this.”

“There have been threats but they are less now because they know that foreigners are watching what is happening in the municipality. So, we are safer. PBI is also part of Quimistan. We are like sisters and brothers.”

PBI-Honduras has accompanied ASODEBICOQ since May 2018.

PBI-Honduras observes the opening of the ¡Viva Berta! feminist camp in Tegucigalpa

By
Brent Patterson
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On May 5, the Peace Brigades International-Honduras Project posted: “Yesterday, we observed the opening of the Viva Berta feminist camp!”

Criterio.hn reports: “During the ninth day of the trial against David Castillo, who is allegedly responsible for being one of the co-perpetrators of the crime against Berta Cáceres, organizations inaugurated the ¡Viva Berta! feminist camp in front of the Supreme Court of Justice building in Tegucigalpa, the capital of Honduras.”

The article continues: “The general coordinator of the Civic Council of Popular and Indigenous Organizations of Honduras (COPINH), Bertha Zúniga Cáceres [who was three when her mother founded the organization] shared with Criterio.hn that the camp is an initiative of feminist organizations ‘to also accompany the demand for justice and ratify that this process is not only of interest to her daughters, her family or her organization COPINH, but also of the community of human rights in Honduras and outside Honduras’.”

Less than a year before she was murdered, Berta stated: “We must shake our conscience free of the rapacious capitalism, racism and patriarchy that will only assure our own self-destruction. …Our Mother Earth – militarized, fenced-in, poisoned, a place where basic rights are systematically violated – demands that we take action.”

A participant at the camp says: “We are going to be taking actions and we are inviting other colleagues to come to this space that belongs to all of us, so that we can reclaim the thought, the legacy and everything that Berta has left to each one of us.”

PBI-Honduras has accompanied COPINH since May 2016.

PBI-Guatemala accompanies the Peaceful Resistance of La Puya in their struggle against the El Tambor gold mine

By
Brent Patterson
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On April 30, the Peace Brigades International-Guatemala Project posted: “Today, PBI accompanied the Peaceful Resistance of La Puya.”

In March 2012 residents from San José del Golfo and San Pedro Ayampuc – an area known as La Puya, just north of Guatemala City – set up a 24-hour a day blockade at the entrance of the Vancouver-based Radius Gold Inc. El Tambor mine.

Communities have opposed the mine from the time they learned of the concession in 2011, raising concerns about the lack of consultation, violation of Indigenous peoples’ rights, and the detrimental health and environmental impacts of the mine.

The Canadian company sold its interest in the El Tambor mine to US-based Kappes, Cassiday & Associates in August 2012 for deferred cash payments and a royalty interest in the mine’s gold production.

Then on May 23, 2014, after two years of peaceful struggle, the communities in resistance to the mine were violently evicted; at least 20 people were injured and 7 were taken to the hospital. PBI-Guatemala was present and witnessed that assault.

Even after that eviction and machinery was escorted onto the mine site, members of La Puya have continued a 24-hour presence in opposition to the project.

By February 2016, the Peaceful Resistance of La Puya won a Guatemalan Supreme Court ruling that provisionally suspended the mining licence because there had not been prior consultation with affected communities, as is required under Guatemalan and international law, in particular the International Labour Organization’s Convention 169.

In response, Kappes, Cassiday & Associates filed a claim with the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes, a World Bank arbitration mechanism, claiming its investor rights under the Dominican Republic–Central America Free Trade Agreement (that includes the United States and Guatemala) had been violated.

That arbitration process at the World Bank continues.

PBI-Guatemala has accompanied the Peaceful Resistance of La Puya since November 2012. On the day of the eviction in May 2014, Peaceful Resistance member Yolanda Oquelí appealed to the police as a PBI-Guatemala volunteer observed the exchange.

PBI-Kenya hopes to enhance the safety of human rights defenders in the lead-up to the August 2022 general elections

By
Brent Patterson
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The Peace Brigades International-Kenya Project has posted: “PBI Kenya began the year on a high note, by continuing to support the work of the HRDs [human rights defenders] of the Social Justice Centres in Kenya through a new project titled ‘Raising the voice, visibility and effectiveness of the human rights movement in Kenya’.”

“It seeks to advance advocacy capacities in order to contribute to their ability to bring issues of human rights violations, and solutions, to the national debate.”

PBI-Kenya further notes: “This project will also hope to contribute to preparing human rights defenders for the planned elections, especially in enhancing their safety and security.”

That general election is scheduled for August 9, 2022.

In May 2017, just prior to the last general election in Kenya, the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders commented: “Human rights defenders often face hostile discourse from State officials and are denigrated via smear campaigns with the aim to delegitimize their work. …This has particularly affected human rights defenders and civil society addressing voters’ education and electoral monitoring ahead of the general elections.”

“As Election Day approaches, Kenyan political authorities have seemed increasingly reluctant to work with civil society on the issue and have publicly condemned and limited civil society planned activities around voters’ education and electoral observation.”

It further noted: “Moreover, the mission heard testimonies of increased gender-based violence, including sexual assault, against WHRDs in the context of the upcoming general elections or when participating in public demonstrations.”

That report calls on the international community to: “Continue to grant particular attention to the protection of human rights defenders in Kenya, in accordance with the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, the EU, the Swiss, the French the Irish, the Dutch, the Finnish, the Norwegian and the Canadian Guidelines on Human Rights Defenders.”

Following the 2017 election, Human Rights Watch stated: “The elections were marred by serious human rights violations by Kenyan security forces, who used excessive force to break up protests and carry out house-to-house operations particularly in opposition strongholds in Nairobi and western Kenya.”

It further noted: “At least 12 people were killed by police in western counties of Kisumu and Siaya alone and another 33 in Nairobi during the violence.”

And in March 2018, the Canada-Africa Parliamentary Association visited Kenya. It met with PBI-Kenya and other human rights organizations. That meeting discussed elections and the parliamentary report stated: “Both male and female candidates sometimes engage private militia to intimidate their opponents and the people who support them. Freedom of the press is often violated; there have been allegations that journalists have been intimidated, arrested and even murdered.”

The full article by PBI-Kenya can be read here. The Observatory’s report is at 2017 Elections: Broken Promises Put Human Rights Defenders At Risk.

Saab markets its Gripen fighter jet with the tagline: “It’s a human right to feel safe”

By
Brent Patterson
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The Stockholm-based aircraft manufacturer Saab is one of the transnational corporations bidding to sell 88 new fighter jets to Canada.

Saab is marketing its Gripen fighter jet to Canada and other countries in various ways.

Its latest spin: “It’s a human right to feel safe.”

It is an audacious claim given fighter jets have been involved in violations of human rights including: the bombing of a migrant detention centre in Libya killing 53 people in July 2019, the bombing of a school bus in Yemen killing 40 children and 11 adults in August 2018, and the bombing of electricity infrastructure in Iraq that resulted in the severe deprivation of clean drinking water and an outbreak of cholera.

The short narrative film Air Show also gives a sense of the trauma experience by a refugee seeing fighter jets in the skies over their home in Toronto.

The Gripen E, the fighter jet that Canada could buy, has destructive capabilities that are hard to reconcile with the imperative of a human right.

Airforce Technology has highlighted: “The air-to-air missiles on the Gripen E include infrared-guided short-range IRIS-T missile, and the Meteor missile… The aircraft also has the flexibility to be fitted with Sidewinder and A-Darter missiles…”

“The Gripen E can also be integrated with a number of air-to-surface weapons including unguided Mk82, Mk83 and Mk84 bombs, laser-guided bombs such as GBU-12, GBU-16 and GBU-10, and advanced bombs such as GBU-49 and GBU-39.”

That article also notes: “The aircraft features a 27mm all-purpose Mauser BK27 high velocity gun providing both air-to-air and air-to-surface attack capability.”

While much can be said about all these weapons, let us look at just one of the air-to-surface weapons listed above: the Mk82 bomb.

The Characterisation of Explosive Weapons Project (CEW) says: “In 2016, various configurations of the Mk 82 have been used in a number of countries and territories, including Afghanistan, Gaza, Iraq, Libya, Syria, and Yemen.”

In describing its “lethal effects”, that research group further notes: “A standard Mk 82 bomb body produces a lethal area of approximately 80 m (across) by 30 m (along), giving a lethal area of approximately 2,400 m2.”

The countries that currently have Gripen fighter jets include Sweden, Hungary, Thailand, Brazil, and the United Kingdom. The Gripen was deployed by the Swedish Air Force in Libya where Saab says it flew 650 combat missions between April to October 2011.

And along with Canada, potential purchasers of the airplane include Colombia, India, Indonesia, and the Philippines.

The Canadian government is currently evaluating three bids for a new fighter jet and is expected to make its decision late this year or early next year.

Canada plans to spend $5 billion on military drones armed with missiles and laser-guided bombs

By
Brent Patterson
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Photo: Canada could spend $5 billion on SkyGuardian drones, the successor to the Reaper drone, that could be equipped with missiles and laser-guided bombs.

On May 5, the Canadian Press reported: “Canada is inching closer to the purchase of armed drones for its military as details around how the controversial weapons will be used are starting to come together after nearly two decades of delays and discussion.”

That article adds: “A formal request for bids from the two dronemakers shortlisted for the competition – worth up to $5-billion – is set to kick off in the fall.”

It further notes: “The government and military say the unmanned aircraft will be used for surveillance and intelligence gathering as well as delivering pinpoint strikes from the air on enemy forces in places where the use of force has been approved.”

This builds on a news report by Justin Ling in Vice in August 2020.

Vice reported: “In 2015, not long after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was elected, Ottawa signalled interest in purchasing armed drones.”

It would also appear that around that time: “In a briefing for industry players, a representative from the procurement arm of the Canadian government laid out Canada’s desire for its long-range, medium-altitude drone.”

That article concluded that in 2019 the Canadian government announced two possible suppliers: L3 Technologies and General Atomics Aeronautical Systems.

– “L3 Technologies is working with Israel Aerospace Industries to pitch a modified version of its Heron drone, which has become a favourite of the Israeli Defence Forces (Canada has actually leased these systems from Israel).”

– “General Atomics is proposing Canada buy the MQ-9B SkyGuardian—a successor to the MQ-9 Reaper and the MQ-1 Predator, which became synonymous with the Obama administration’s overseas drone operations.”

In 2016, Ling had also reported: “In December [2015], government memos obtained by VICE News show that the government was looking into the infamous American Reaper and Predator drones as a possibility for its air force.”

That article suggested Canada could buy up to 12 drones.

Overall, the Canadian government has committed to increase spending on the military from $18.9 billion in 2016-17 to $32.7 billion in 2026-27, with total spending over a 20-year period of $553 billion on a cash basis.

PBI-Colombia accompanies Justice and Peace Commission at youth-led social protest humanitarian space in Bogota

By
Brent Patterson
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On May 6, the Peace Brigades International-Colombia Project posted: “Today PBI accompanied the Justice and Peace Commission in mobilizations at Portal de las Americas Kennedy where youth and grassroots organizations in the area have created a humanitarian space for participation in the social protests.”

Portal de las Americas Kennedy is a transit station in Ciudad Kennedy, a predominantly poor and working-class locality in Bogotá.

Agence France-Presse reports: “Tens of thousands of Colombians have taken to the streets in demonstrations against a proposed tax reform but have since morphed into broader protest against the government of President Ivan Duque.”

The mobilization began on April 28 against a $6.4 billion ‘tax reform’ package that critics say would have disproportionately impacted the poor.

France 24 explains the broader context of the protests: “Aboriginal communities and citizens in general, such as young university students, demonstrate against a project on health reform, demand compliance with what was agreed in the 2016 peace agreement, reject militarization policies, and maintain their stance against fracking and glyphosate spraying, which the Government seeks to resume.”

That article also further notes: “The scenes of aggression in recent days [have] revived calls for police reform. They call for the dismantling of ESMAD, the Mobile Riot Squad, accused of suppressing protesters.”

Yesterday, the Bogota-based organization Temblores reported that after nine days of national strike protests there were 1,728 documented cases of police violence against the protests and 37 homicides committed by the police.

The Peace Brigades International-Colombia Project has accompanied the Inter-Church Justice and Peace Commission since 1994.

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