US Secretary of State Antony Blinken takes part in the Ministerial Conference on Migration at the Foreign Ministry headquarters in Bogota, Colombia October 20, 2021. – Luisa Gonzalez/Pool via Reuters
BOGOTA, Oct 21 – Accountability for human rights abuses committed during Colombia’s decades-long conflict and recent anti-government protests are critical to preventing future abuses, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said during a visit to the Andean country yesterday.
Blinken met Colombian President Ivan Duque ahead of talks with regional officials to discuss migration in the Americas.
“Accountability is critically important – accountability for the most grave human rights violations and abuses committed during the country’s conflict, accountability for any abuses committed in response to protests earlier this year and of course accountability for those responsible for attacks on human rights defenders, journalists and other civil society leaders,” Blinken said.
“Ending impunity as we know it is also one of the best ways to prevent more abuses going forward.”
At least 29 people were killed in connection with protests against Duque’s social and economic policies earlier this year, with many deaths blamed on excessive use of force by police.
Human rights groups had urged Blinken to press Duque on policing, as well as growing violence by armed groups and the potential restart of aerial fumigation of coca crops.
Colombia is the United States’ closest ally in Latin America and the two countries coordinate closely on security, especially in the fight against drug trafficking.
During joint comments to journalists, Duque repeated a frequent refrain, saying his government has a zero tolerance policy for police abuse but also will not stand for vandalism or violence against security forces.
The ministerial meeting on migration on Wednesday evening includes officials from Chile, Brazil, Canada, Costa Rica, Honduras, Peru, Ecuador, Guatemala and El Salvador, among others.
Before leaving the Ecuadorean capital of Quito earlier yesterday, Blinken said countries in the Western Hemisphere must work together to stem “an almost unprecedented moment for migration.”
The ministers will discuss assistance for voluntary returns by migrants without valid asylum claims, Blinken said later in Bogota, as well as increased law enforcement cooperation against smugglers and traffickers.
Poverty and violence in the region’s most troubled countries – including El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Venezuela and Haiti – has driven migration flows to the United States and other parts of Latin America.
Colombia has recently seen thousands of mostly Haitian migrants bottlenecked as they travel north and has long been the top destination for people fleeing neighbouring Venezuela.
Economic downturns sparked by the coronavirus pandemic have made jobs scarce through much of the region, often hitting immigrants hardest.
“No one of our countries addressing it alone is going to succeed. We have to have a sense of shared responsibility and common action,” Blinken said.
Blinken’s visit to Ecuador focused on highlighting that country’s democratic credentials at a time when authoritarianism is on the rise. – Reuters