UPDATE ON JIGUAMIANDO AND CURVARADO LAND DISPUTE

C O N F I D E N T I A L BOGOTA 002291 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/20/2028 TAGS: PTER PGOV PREL ECON SOCI CO SUBJECT: UPDATE ON JIGUAMIANDO AND CURVARADO LAND DISPUTE REF: A. BOGOTA 239 ¶B. BOGOTA 3855 Classified By: Political Counselor John S. Creamer. Reasons: 1.4 (b) and (d). SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (U) Legal, bureaucratic, and security issues--exacerbated by resistance from local palm oil interests and divisions within the displaced communities--continue to delay the return of the displaced Jiguamiando and Curvarado communities to their land. Interior and Justice Vice Minister Isabel Nieto Jaramillo told us three steps need to be completed before the displaced communities can return to their land: 1) the Superintendent of Notarization and Registration must complete three resolutions revoking the titles of palm oil companies; 2) the Ministry of Interior and Justice (MOIJ) must obtain an extraordinary legal order (Restitution Action) authorizing the security forces to remove the illegal occupiers and, 3) the GOC needs to complete a census to determine who are the rightful members of the communities. End Summary. WHAT HAPPENED? -------------- ¶2. (U) Legal, bureaucratic, and security obstacles--exacerbated by resistance from local economic interests and divisions within displaced communities--continue to delay the return of the displaced Jiguamiando and Curvarado communities to their land, which remains illegally occupied by palm oil companies. Special Advisor in the Ministry of Agriculture Lorena Garnica told us that after years of legal battles with the palm oil companies, MinAg delineated the land that belonged to the communities in resolutions 2159 and 2424 which were issued in September 2007. She said even though the MinAg resolutions provide the legal basis for the communities to return to the land, the process to void the illegal occupiers' titles, as well as the legal process to remove the current occupiers, still need to be addressed. SORTING OUT LAND TITLES -------------- ¶3. (U) The Superintendent of Notarization and Registration completed two of the five resolutions that revoke the illegally obtained land titles from the occupiers. Two of the three remaining resolutions are only pending notification of the parties; the third may be delayed due to an appeal. Vice Minister Nieto told us the Ministry will proceed with the land restitution in the areas where the resolutions are complete. She expected all but one titling resolution to be resolved by the end of June 2008. KICKING OUT THE ILLEGAL OCCUPIERS -------------- ¶4. (U) Garnica said to legally remove the illegal occupiers from the land one of two processes were needed--either the local courts in Jiguamiando and Curvarado could resolve the issue (which would take about 8-10 years),or the Police Inspectors' office in Carmen del Darien (IPCD) could require the occupiers to leave. The GOC ruled out the former option due to the lengthy timeline, as well as concerns that local palm oil farmers would pressure the courts. The second option was derailed when the IPCD rejected a request by the Inter-ecclesiastic Commission for Justice and Peace to remove the occupiers for "restitution due to occupation." This type of legal request must be made by the legal owners within one year of the illegal occupation. In this case, over eleven years have passed since the palm oil firms occupied the land. ¶5. (C) With the local avenues for resolution of the dispute eliminated, Nieto told us the MOIJ will seek a extraordinary legal order (Restitution Action) before the end of June that would allow the security forces to remove the illegal occupiers. She told us if this did not work, the MIOJ would move forward through criminal law. Nieto acknowledged that if they followed the normal legal procedure to remove the illegal occupiers, they would have to wait for the local courts which could take up to 10 more years. She also noted that in many regions, strong economic interests manipulate local institutions to delay resolution of land claims for years. WHO IS REALLY PART OF THE COMMUNITY? -------------- ¶6. (U) MIOJ field advisor Camilo Lopez told us divisions among the displaced over who belongs to the communities further complicate the return effort. The region has seen various displacements over the last twenty years, leading to competing claims. Lopez claims Justice and Peace's attempt to impose an ideological agenda on the communities has deepened these divisions. On June 5 2008, Nieto agreed with officials from the Presidential Human Rights Office, MinAg, MinEnvi, MOD, CNP, Accion Social, and the Governors' Offices of Choco and Antioquia to conduct a census to determine who are the true members of the communities. They plan to consult with the communities starting June 23 on how to conduct the census. They envision using self-identification together with a peer-verification process. Nieto said the census will take three months, but claimed the delay will resolve conflicts before the land is returned. The census will also give the GOC data on who qualifies for development, health and educational assistance. TRANSITION PERIOD CREATES CONFLICT -------------- ¶7. (C) Three representatives from the Inter-ecclesiastic Commission for Justice and Peace and five Curvarado and Jiguamiando community members reviewed their concerns about the land restitution process with us on May 17. Several members participated in an altercation with police on May 17 inCurvarado. They claimed the local police were working with the palm oil firms and the "paramilitaries," and used excessive force to remove them from contested lands. The police told us they responded to a complaint from a cattle owner who said community members had penned in his cattle without food or water. When the police arrived, they verified the owner's complaints and freed the cattle. The community members claimed that in "self defense," one protester injured a police officer with a machete. They say the cattle were eating their crops. The police temporarily detained two Justice and Peace members, together with the community member who injured the police officer. ¶8. (C) The altercation shows how the failure to resolve land disputes in a timely manner and through legal means can lead to violence. Justice and Peace has provided legal representation to the communities, but one member of Justice and Peace told us that if the GOC did not return the land soon, they would be, "left with no choice but to support the communities' desire to take the lands back by whatever means necessary". MOIJ Lopez told us other community members accused Justice and Peace of bringing in "outsiders" to take back lands that never belonged to them, noting that many were not Afro-Colombian. Nieto and Garnica confirmed these complaints, which led them to support the census. They asserted that the primary fissure within the communities is between Justice and Peace-supporters and their opponents. ¶9. (C) Colombian National Police (CNP) International Office Director Colonel Buitrago tells us the CNP will continue to augment the number of police in the area to address the conflict, and noted the police will be the lead security organization in this effort. Currently, police presence is limited; the nearest police station is located fifteen miles to the north in Bajira and transportation is difficult. Buitrago says the CNP's "hands are tied" until the final legal issues are resolved. Ministry of Defense Human Rights Director Colonel Juan Carlos Gomez Ramirez tells us the military are ready to "support the police" as needed. WHAT WILL HAPPEN TO THE PALM OIL PLANTATIONS? -------------- ¶10. (U) MinAg Advisor Jose Leonidas Tobon will lead the agricultural development projects in the Curvarado and Jiguamiando areas. He claimed that about 80% of the community members he has met with were interested in continuing the cultivation of palm oil after the companies leave. Leonidas fears that over 50% of the palm oil trees are already diseased, and that if they are left unattended for much longer, the communities will lose an important source of future earnings. In contrast, Justice and Peace tells us the majority of the community members refuse to continue the production of palm oil. Other community members lament that they would have to sell their product to the same companies that usurped their land and used violence against their families. Leonidas tells us they will provide technical assistance to any community interested in palm oil production. BROWNFIELD =======================CABLE ENDS============================