Case History: Yomaira Mendoza
On the evening of June 25 2014, the leaders of a movement for land restitution, Ms Yomaira Mendoza and Mr Enrique Cabezas, received via a text message a death threat against themselves, their family members and other human right defenders. Since 2005, lands right defenders have been victims of multiple threats and intimidations by illegal occupants of communal lands and neo-paramilitary groups of the region.
Yomaira Mendoza is a leader of a land rights movement that claims the restitution of lands for the communities of Curbaradó in the Uraba region in Colombia.
On 24 July 2014, family members of Ms Yomaira Mendoza and Mr Enrique Cabezas received death threats via SMS. Later that night, two unknown men attempted to attack the human rights defenders.
Yomaira Mendoza and Enrique Cabezas report having received around 80 death threats to date and being under constant surveillance.
Yomaira Mendoza and Enrique Cabezas are leaders of a land rights movement that claims the restitution of lands for the communities of Curbaradó in the Uraba region in Colombia. Enrique Cabezas is member of the land restitution group G8 in Curbaradó and is also a member of Comunidades Construyendo Paz – COMPAZ (Communities Building Peace). The Comisión Intereclesial de Justicia y Paz – CIJP (Inter-Church Commission for Justice and Peace) accompanies human rights defenders – including Yomaira Mendoza and Enrique Cabezas – and their communities in the processes of land restitution in the region. Due to their work, several members of the CIJP have been subjected to death threats and harassment
On the night of 24 July 2014, Yomaira Mendoza and Enrique Cabezas were victims of an attempted attack at the place where they are currently in refuge. The two unknown male attackers were stopped only by an armed bodyguard who restrained the intruders and called the police. However, the attackers managed to escape and, minutes later, family members of Yomaira Mendoza and Enrique Cabezas received via SMS a threat to kill the human rights defenders. On the morning of the 24 July 2014, a further death threat was received via SMS by relatives.
On 6 July 2014, Enrique Cabezas participated in a forum on the issue of victims as agreed between the Colombian government and FARC guerrillas in the Havana negotiations in the city of Villavicencio. Later that day, a threat to kill Enrique Cabezas was received via SMS by a member of his family.
On the evening of June 25 2014, the leaders of a movement for land restitution, Ms Yomaira Mendoza and Mr Enrique Cabezas, received via a text message a death threat against themselves, their family members and other human right defenders from the Comisión Intereclesial de Justicia y Paz - CIJP (Inter-Church Commission for Justice and Peace).
This text message is the latest of a series of 78 death threats issued against these leaders of the restitution of land rights movement.
Yomaira Mendoza and Enrique Cabezas are leaders of a land rights movement that claims for the restitution of lands for the communities of Curbaradó in the Uraba region in Colombia. Enrique Cabezas is member of the emblematic land restitution group G8 in Curbaradó and is also a member of Comunidades Construyendo Paz – COMPAZ (Communities Building Peace). The CIJP is a church-based NGO that exposes human rights violations committed by state security forces and paramilitaries in conflict zones in Colombia. The NGO also accompanies human rights defenders and their communities in the processes of land restitution in the region. Due to their work, several members of the CIJP have been subjected to death threats and harassment in the past.
The text message received on June 25 threatened that “in no way we will give up on these lands, before that happens many deaths will occur”. Additionally, they offered money to Yomaira Mendoza and Enrique Cabezas, stating they should stop advocating for land restitution and take the money, and that this would be their last opportunity to do so. After they received the text message, threatening phone calls were directed to family members of the lands restitution leaders.
Since 2005, members of CIJP and other lands right defenders have been victims of multiple threats and intimidations by illegal occupants of communal lands and neo-paramilitary groups of the region. Members of the communities have been threatened with a massacre if the lands restitution takes place and human rights defenders working with CIJP have been victims of surveillance, persecutions, and threatening text messages, phone call and emails. On June 30 and previously on March 7 2014, unknown men surveyed the CIJP offices in Bogotá. On March 5 2014, Yomaira Mendoza was travelling from the Uraba to Bogotá when her car was followed. The next day during her plane flight, the land rights defender received a text message confirming they knew she was in Bogotá. The permanent harassment Yomaira Mendoza has been facing has had serious consequences on her health and she has been diagnosed with acute stress disorder.
Since December 2013, the lands rights defenders have stated to the Prosecutor's office the harassments they have faced from the illegal occupants of lands in Curbaradó. These death threats may be a result of the denunciations leaders have made against well known and rich banana and livestock business owners. The Uraba is a region of permanent conflict because of its rich mining resources and biodiversity in addition to the presence of illegal armed groups. Despite repeated orders from the Constitutional Court, the lands in question have not yet been returned to the communities.
