CPTnet
June 22, 2001
Colombia: Call for Prayer and Candles

CPTers and representatives from local peace groups have joined a march of
about one thousand people from farm to farm and house to house in the
Cordoba Province to find Kimy Pernia Domic, an indigenous leader of the
Embera Katío people in Colombia. CPT invites Canadian and US supporters
join this walk by lighting candles and sending the wax from the burnt
candles to officials. By doing so we can join the Colombia team and the
Embera Katío people in following the trail of violence and terror back to
the homes of the paramilitaries. To this end we will bring our own
governments to accountability and signal our disapproval of their tacit
support of the paramilitary regime.

"This is one of the first times that such a large organized group of
Colombians have said 'no' to the paramilitaries in such massive numbers and
used their feet to call for dignity and respect," said CPTer Ben Horst who
along with teammate Scott Kerr is traveling with the search party.

Kimy Pernia has been targeted by paramilitaries in response to his
opposition the the Urrá Dam megaproject. The Urrá Dam, partially funded
by the Canadian government, ravaged the Embera Katío ancestral lands and
threatens the group's very survival. In the recent past several leaders were
assassinated, community members were abducted, and others disappeared due to
their active resistance to the project. Kimy Pernia's disappearance is the
latest in this terrifying trend.

LITURGY OF ACTION:

We ask that our supporters to pray for the indigenous of the Americas. The
following liturgy can be adapted by individuals, families on congregations.

We honor the Embera Katío people of northern Colombia as they search for
their brother Kimy and an end to the murders, kidnappings, and "development"
projects that have disrupted their lives.

"Thus says the Lord: Keep your voice from weeping, and your eyes from tears;
for there is a reward for your work, says the Lord: They shall come back
from the land of the enemy; there is hope for your future, say the Lord:
Your children shall come back to their own country." Jeremiah 31: 16-17

Light a candle

Send the wax, our symbol of unity with the indigenous peoples of the
Americas, along with a note of explanation to officials of your government
or the Colombian embassy.

Citizens of Canada may wish to explain their government's role in the
funding of the massive Urrá Dam dam. Citizens of the US may wish to signal
their opposition to Plan Colombia, a program which, in its first year, has
injected $1.3 billion of mostly military aid into an already war-torn
country where human rights concerns are often ignored and the distinctions
between the drug war and the civil war and between the military and
paramilitary forces is often blurry.

CONTACT INFO CANADA:
Prime Minister Jean Chretien
Office of the Prime Minister
80 Wellington Street
Ottawa, ON
K1A 0A2

Colombian Embassy in Canada
360 Albert St., Suite 1002
Ottawa, ON
K1R 7X7

UNITED STATES:
President George W. Bush
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500

Embassy of Colombia to the US
2118 Leroy Pl, NW
Washington, DC 20008