A/HRC/16/45/Add.1
concessions on ancestral or collectively titled lands (Law 70, art. 27). Technical and
financial assistance from Government ministries, including loans for business
development and mine exploitation, should be available as a priority to those
exercising their rights of pre-emption. Additionally Government should establish a
programme of loan guarantees to encourage private banks to lend to Afro-Colombian
communities and individuals wishing to develop agro-businesses, mines and other
enterprises.
94.
Forced displacement has massively impacted on the lives of Afro-Colombians
and has devastated communities. Displacement is a current reality; not simply the
legacy of a depleted war. The motivations of the perpetrators have evolved from
tactical conflict-related to commercial, related to the acquisition of lands for illegal
crops, agricultural megaprojects, economic development and exploitation of natural
resources. Displacement continues to affect individuals and communities and remains
a major concern of the Afro-Colombian communities.
95.
The Government should implement the measures required under
Constitutional Court Order 005 of January 2009 as a matter of the highest priority.
The administrative process for reparations should be adequately resourced and
transformed to effectively meet the needs of the displaced communities. Compensation
and humanitarian assistance programmes must be appropriate to the needs of victim
communities. Efforts and strategies to prevent further displacement should be
intensified and targeted towards the specific situations of Afro-Colombian
communities identified to be at risk, in close consultation with those communities.
Equally, efforts to facilitate the safe return of Afro-Colombians to their lands must be
intensified as a high priority.
96.
Dispossession of Afro-Colombian lands is a violation of this people’s
fundamental rights that remains unresolved. Implementing the rights of victims to
reparations and restitution is a priority to be enforced through the courts and with
rigorous implementation of court rulings. Where lands have been unlawfully
appropriated by others, environments damaged and livelihoods destroyed, additional
and long-term assistance must be provided to communities to help them to rebuild
and restore their communities. Furthermore, private companies and public officials
who contributed to violent or deceitful land grabbing must be investigated and
punished.
97.
Afro-Colombians’ right to truth, justice and reparations must be effectively
protected within a comprehensive and systematic transitional justice process, which
protects Afro-Colombian victims on an equal basis, taking into account their differing
circumstances. The package must guarantee the rights of victims to reparations and
property restitution for the complete range of crimes suffered by Afro-Colombians
individually and collectively perpetrated by both State and non-state actors. Any new
laws on reparations and land restitution must comply with relevant Constitutional
Court rulings, be consistent with the Pinheiro Principles on Housing and Property
Restitution for Refugees and Displaced Persons and take into account the specific
needs of Afro-Colombian communities and specifically protect the rights of women in
the process. The legislative process should be used as a vehicle for meaningful
consultations with all victim communities and include the voices of those communities
in the Congressional debates.
98.
Concrete and robust measures must be taken to address the underrepresentation of Afro-Colombians in political structures, State institutions and
decision-making bodies at all levels. The fact that there are two reserved seats in
Congress for Afro-Colombians is positive; however further measures, including in
recruitment and training, must be taken to ensure that Afro-Colombians are
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