Troops from the Special Energy and Highways Battalion #8 breaking International Humanitarian Law

19.06.08

Public Denunciation
CAHUCOPANA, 19 June, 2008

The organization Humanitarian Action for Coexistence and Peace in Northeast Antioquia (CAHUCOPANA) denounces before the national and international human rights institutions and the general public that troops belonging to Special Energy and Highways Battalion #8, from the Colombian Army’s 14th Brigade, under the command of Sargent Rodríguez, are violating International Humanitarian Law
by camping inside rural farms and houses in the village of Altos de Manila, in the municipality of Remedios (Antioquia).

The troop are also using utensils from the campesinos’ houses to prepare their food, putting the rural population’s life and safety at risk.

On June 16, townspeople observed four masked persons together with troops of the same battalion, which has caused uneasiness and fear among this region’s people.

We emphatically reject the behavior of these troops from the 14th Brigade. We demand that the lives and safety of Northeast Antioquia’s rural communities be respected. We invite all national and international organizations to speak out against these acts, which put the lives of this village’s women, children and men at serious risk.

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