DATES:16-29 January

Other Delegations: 14-27 May, 16-29 July, and 24 September to 7 October, 2008.

Each delegation will have a special focus as follows:

January 16-29, 2008: The Magdalena Medio region of Colombia has a complex history of engagement with both the armed conflict and the organization of non-violent, civil society alternatives. As Colombia's richest oil and gold producing region-as well as an important region for coca growing, processing, and transportation to northern markets-the Magdalena Medio continues to be a centre of conflict between the Colombian Armed Forces, left-wing guerrilla organizations, and right-wing paramilitaries. In spite of the ongoing violence and the negative impacts of State-sponsored programs such as coca fumigation, many communities have organized themselves into Humanitarian Spaces that work collectively to build a culture of peace and basic human rights. Delegates will have the opportunity to meet with human rights and social justice organizers in both Bogotá and Barrancabermeja, where CPT's full-time Team has been based since 2001, as well as with rural communities and their leaders in the municipality of Micoahumado in southern Bolívar.

May 14-27, 2008: Nariño, a department in southern Colombia, forms part of the traditional territory of several Indigenous groups, including the Awá. The Awá People have been seriously impacted by Colombia's armed conflict: most recently, fumigations under Plan Colombia have pushed coca cultivation from the northeast of Putamayo and southern Cauca into Nariño. Paramilitaries, the Colombian Armed Forces, and further fumigations have followed. Two left-wing guerrilla organizations are also active. The convergence of armed actors, coca cultivation, multinational megaprojects, and Plan Colombia have escalated the conflict in Nariño and in Awá territory, making it one of the most violent regions in Colombia. Delegates will have the opportunity to be part of the CPT Colombia Team intermittent accompaniment of Awá communities that began in the fall of 2006. Delegates will meet with Indigenous and other human rights and social justice organizations in Bogotá, then travel with Team members to Nariño to hear first-hand about the struggle and Plans for Life of the Awá People.

July 16-29, 2008: The San Lucas Mountains in southern Bolívar house the most valuable and largely unexploited gold reserve in the Americas. More than 30,000 people depend on small-scale mining for a living. Long-recognized as a centre for guerrilla activity, paramilitaries began to move into the area in the last decade. Today, the Colombian Armed Forces are increasingly committing human rights violations, as they "secure" the zone for multinational investment, including that by Canada's Kinross Gold Corporation (BEMA), which works in conjunction with the multinational Anglo Gold Ashanti. In order to reclaim their rights, small miners have organized themselves and their communities to demand respect from armed actors and the State. Delegates will have the opportunity to meet with Colombian mining, human rights and social justice organizers in both Bogotá and Barrancabermeja, where CPT's full-time Team has been based since 2001, as well as with rural communities and their leaders in southern Bolívar's mining zone.

 
FUNDRAISING EXPECTATION: US $1800 / $2200 Canadian, which includes round-trip airfare.