Bogotá, January 31, 2017
As we have publicly stated before, we vehemently condemn Mr. Aldemar Parra’s assassination and all human rights violations that have occurred in our area of influence or any other location. Neo-paramilitary groups or any other groups outside of the law do not represent Drummond’s interest. We call upon these groups to stop the violence in Cesar and around the country.
We have been in constant contact with authorities on this subject and have participated in security meetings organized by the police and other authorized agencies. We have also requested the authorities to provide additional security in the area and for the threatened individuals, as well as we have pushed for investigation of the crimes committed.
The authorities have held two security meetings with the community, in which representatives from the coal companies were present, and the following actions were agreed upon:
- More frequent patrols by the Police
- Roadside checkpoints in El Hatillo by the Army
- Support of Sijin (Criminal Investigation Unit) in investigations
- Improvements in lighting by the mayor’s office
- Cleaning of community lots by the community
- Agreement to hold a self-protection training workshop between PDPC, the NGO PAS and the Community on January 30 and 31, 2017. PDCP is the Program for Development and Peace in Cesar, a civil society initiative that aims to improve the socioeconomic conditions of the department of Cesar.
- Logistical support by the mining companies for this event
- The community asked Colombian Natural Resources (CNR) to clean the side of the road in front of the eucalyptus forest and repair the fences
- The community asked CNR to increase surveillance in the eucalyptus forest
- A new security meeting will be held on February 10 at 9 am in El Hatillo. A notice will be sent to the entities that did not attend the past meetings.
We will maintain open channels of communication with the communities, and report to the authorities any threats that we are aware of.
Drummond reiterates its commitment to improve the conditions for recovery and reconciliation during the post-conflict through its corporate social responsibility programs, which will continue to benefit the people of this region.