LUZ MARY ROSERO GARCES
"I define myself as a Black woman of heart and soul".
She is a prominent Black leader and recognised human rights defender in her communities for her selfless and transformative work since 1995. She is the founder of the organisation Corporación Caminos de Mujer (CCM), which works for the personal and organisational development of women, black youth and communities in Colombia.
She is currently a social communicator and promoter of identity, her territory and cultural traditions, specifically for the construction and vindication of the rights of black people in Colombia.
The last couple of years of a peace process has raised hopes for an end to the decades long conflict that has plagued Colombia. However, the negotiations between the government and the FARCs have not had a significant impact on the safety and security of human rights defenders in the country, which remains one of the countries with the highest rates of killing of HRDs in the world. This situation seems to have deteriorated in 2015 with the UN highlighting the alarming number of HRDs killed, with 69 between January and August 2015, while the number was 35 for the same period in 2014.
HRDs in Colombia work in a violent and unsafe environment. They are subjected to threats, intimidation, arbitrary detention, enforced disappearances, physical assaults, torture, killings, illegal searches of their homes and offices and stigmatisation as a result of their activities in defence of human rights. The perpetrators of these abuses are frequently paramilitary groups, many of whom have links to the government or security services, or armed opposition groups. The continued frequent and severe threats and attacks against HRDs around the country contradict government claims of paramilitary demobilisation.
