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Champions Update: Colombia

Read the very latest from the field.

Cali, Colombia, May 2007


I am delighted to write to you with the news that 36 women have just graduated from the School in Santander de Quilichao. We're so proud of them. Each made a real and true commitment. Most of the women are very poor; for them to pay to travel long distances to attend between forty and eighty hours is a considerable achievement. We will continue to support them with a monthly meeting to plan their future activities, take material and feed the network that has been created and the magazine that will be published.

Without your help these 36 women would never have been able to graduate. Thank you so much for your continued support. I hope you know that you really are making a difference to these women's lives and the city they live in.

Love,  Julieth

Cali, Colombia, March 2007


We're delighted to bring you a Champions Update from Martha in Cali.

FROM THE FIELD Santander


The outreach programme in Santander is coming to an end. It's been an incredibly rich and fruitful process for us all. Three women from the course are now standing for election in the local councils, one as mayor. It's incredible; they are women with little formal education but they are so strong in spirit. The women have also set up a newspaper called ‘Women’s Skin’, which will be distributed in villages throughout the area. We will fund the magazine for the first two issues.

Back home and the new course has begun at the Escuela with 47 participants. They are a nice group; mixed and harmonious with a wide age range. News about our work is spreading. We’ve been invited onto two television programmes to speak about the Escuela. Many women called us after seeing the show to enrol for next year.

Students prepared 500 placards for International Women’s Day on March 8th. They placed them in prominent points around the city and on the walls of school and universities with the following slogan.
“Roses shouldn’t be the only present you give women. Respect their life and rights too.”

We also marked the day with the recreation of an ancient water ritual involving 800 women. Using music and flowers we weaved a big net around all those who participated. It was an amazing sight and I will send photos with my next update.

Love,

Martha


JULIETH RECOMMENDS


Thanks for all your emails, especially the one requesting we ask the women for their recommendations of authors that inspired them. Julieth was happy to oblige.

Laura Restrepo
Marcela Serrano
Angela Mastretta
Gioconda Belli


READ MORE
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Previous correspondence from Julieth and the team can be found here

Cali, Colombia, December 2nd 2006


First, thank you for all so much for your continued support. Enrolment has begun for the new course at the Escuela which will run from February to July 2007. Last time I told you about the school's outreach in the village of Santander de Quililichao. We have now successfully completed 40 hours of training - double the amount expected, and we will be doing more.

During November, we have been based in Buenaventura. Buenaventura is the main town (and one of the most important ports in the country) in an area experiencing fierce conflict between the three armed groups. It is two hours from Cali. Although there is a lot of wealth, many of its inhabitants are poor IDP’s (Internally Displaced People) of Afro- Caribbean origin. Over the last 12 months many young people have been assassinated, most recently three women between the ages of 18- 20 who had been tortured. People are scared and no one has the courage to denounce it to the authorities. We have been supporting local women and helping them to organise themselves in order to deal with the humanitarian crisis the region faces.

I will be in touch with more news soon

Julieth

Cali, Colombia, November 8th 2006


Greetings from Cali. You may remember in October we wrote to you about the Escuela’s first outreach programme in the small village of Santander de Quilichao, in the North Valle del Cauca. We’re very excited about the programme as it is our first attempt to reach women in rural areas and give them the chance to find, develop and promote a peaceful way in Colombia.

Santander de Quilichao1

I am delighted to give you an update on the first two classes. It has been a very different, but positive experience. 46 women enrolled: some black, some indigenous, and some mestizas (racially mixed). They have a very low level of scholarship but great leadership potential. There are two town councillors in the group, and many others have participated in community groups for many years.

Santander2

The women we are working with are happy because they know they are breaching a wall that will enable them to reach other women. Most of them have to travel for hours to get to the School and many have very few resources.

Santander3

The women have told us that the priorities for the course should be self-esteem, identity and empowerment. We are working hard to make that happen, and I will be in touch with more news soon, with love, Julieth

Cali, Colombia, November 2nd 2006


The Files of Silence

I am very pleased to write to you with an update from the Colectivo in Cali.

The Escuela Politica (Women’s school of politics),which is funded with your kind support has been working with a researcher tasked with recording the silent history (‘files of silence’) of female Colombian ex-combatants.

The processes of demobilisation and reintegration into civilian life of female ex-combatants in Colombia demonstrate that the transition of woman from bearing arms to civilian life is built on silence. This is due to the fact that the war is seen as an exclusively masculine arena, meaning that the role/history of women has been counted neither in figures nor words. In order to counter the fact that female ex-combatants have been forgotten, and to write their voices into the history of the country, the researcher (Luz Maria London from the University of Antioquia) is confronting the difficulties and challenges with which these women have had to contend in their journey from being fighters to ex-combatants.

There were approximately 40 women at the meeting in the departmental library. We watched a documentary made by the research group and we were all overwhelmed by a deadening silence as we watched unedited images on the screen and heard voices that had never before been heard discovering themselves. Hundreds of questions emerged from this reality.

For the women’s movement the research project and video shown by Luz Maria Londoño posed several challenges:

§ What should be done with women fighters, with those who have been demobilized from the paramilitary groups?

§ How should we ask reparation from them?

§ How do we respond to their needs?

§ From which perspective can involve them as subjects of peace?

§ What lessons have been learned?

§ How can we avoid making the same mistakes as were made during the demobilization processes in Central America?

In sum, there are so many questions for those of us at the School. Thank you once again for supporting our work. I will be in touch with more news soon.

Julieth

Cali, Colombia, October 2006


I would like to start with some good news. One of our dreams has just become a reality! As you know the Escuela Politica (Women’s School of Politics) is based in Cali but we have always wanted to teach in the villages around the city as well. This is now about to happen. We will be running the first unit (20 hours) of the Escuela in the small village of Santander de Quilichao, in the North Valle del Cauca. This is our first attempt to reach women in rural areas and give them the chance to find, develop and promote a peaceful way in Colombia. Enrolment closes on the 13th October. We will keep you updated with our progress.

Of course, this development will not affect our regular school in Cali. We will open subscriptions in November and courses begin in the third week of February.

Looking ahead, next month we shall be joining the national meeting on nonviolence, and also participating in a theatre performance, “Militanbores Contra La Guerra” (A Thousand Drums Against War). Please look forward to photos from the event!

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for supporting the work of the Colectivo. I will be in touch with more news soon.

Cali, Colombia, August 2006


I am pleased to write to you with an update from the Colectivo in Cali. The School has just finished for this year! The graduation ceremony was great fun; irreverent and lively – just like the women themselves!

Women of Cali Dancing

Thirty participants received their certificates. Even those that did not graduate have made an invaluable contribution over the last year and the exchanges and motivation achieved were very positive.

We held our final workshop last week entitled “How women relate to one another”. The workshop was open to all School participants, women of related networks, women involved in trauma healing and all those, like us, who are resolved to live a life of health and happiness, and to share what we have and who we are.

We have one more piece of news to tell you. The School has been selected as a best practice case study by the United Nations. We will be included in the Banco de Buena Practicas published by the UN on Colombian initiatives.

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for supporting the work of the Colectivo. I will be in touch with more news soon.

Women of Cali Escuela Sign

Cali, Colombia, June 2006


Thanks to the money coming through the Peace Direct Champions Programme our training school is giving another 50 women the chance to find, develop and promote a peaceful way in Colombia.

Perhaps the best way to talk about our work is by introducing you to one of the women. Her name is Sandra Patricia Londono. She is a young mother with a two year old child who works at the Community Centre and the library in one of the suburbs of Cali. This is her testimony…

“The Course has been an enriching experience not just because of the lectures and the themes they cover, but also because of the participants themselves. There is a diversity of stories, ideas and experiences which provoked interesting reflections from which I have gained new understandings. I have learnt to become aware of the value of being a woman. I have learnt about the struggles and anguishes that we have had to endure as a result of our ancestors and of the need to end or change those myths that oppress and discriminate us.

I have learnt to look for the respect and the legal recognition of our rights, to look for a world characterized by fairness, justice and solidarity, a world of freedom and peace. I managed to identify and to know about different feminist perspectives, to enrich my vision and vocabulary.

The subject of non-violence moved me greatly since we live in a violent society and need to know mechanisms and ways to disarm the violent one, and contribute to changing this country. Each of the videos seen and the reflections made in the course show us another face of reality, which if we work together we can change.

I am very happy to participate in this course, I am very happy to know there are networks that are united and motivated. But it gives me sadness to know that still there are many women who do not have the opportunity to know of and to participate in these spaces, and that there are women still subjugated by men. I would like to thank the people who run and those who support this project because they make us feel that we are part of the struggle against oppression, discrimination and exclusion; also because we can take and transmit this message to the women of the communities we work in.”

The challenges facing us are great and our resources are limited. However we sincerely believe we are making a difference in Cali and we want to thank you for your support.

Background


The women’s social movement in Cali, Colombia, has been very active in the last three decades. In May 2000, as a result of the development of the movement and the intensification of the armed conflict in Colombia, the Colectivo de Mujeres Pazificas was formed. The Colectivo emerged as an answer to the need for political awareness and for an alternative solution to the great social, economic and political differences in Colombia without the use of violence and weapons. Women were to be the focus of the Colectivo, as together with children they are the most affected by all types of aggression in this conflict.

Key to the development of the Colectivo has been the interest of some women leaders in Cali. This includes Maria Ledi Londoño, an outstanding pacifist and defender of women’s sexual and reproductive health and Elena Garces, a local business woman, who supported the group economically.

In 2000, at the time of the peace negotiations between the government and the FARC (the main guerrilla group in Colombia), the group wondered why women from civil society, as well as women combatants, were absent from the negotiations. The women who formed the Colectivo wanted to know more about the women in the guerrilla and what happened in their midst - especially in the context of increasing violence against children and kidnapping. The group had a response from women from the FARC, in particular from Commander Mariana Páez, and began weekly meetings.

The group wanted to support the participation of women in the negotiations and to promote the inclusion of women’s issues in the agenda. Women had in fact been excluded and the group felt that they could contribute reflections and offer new perspectives towards peace. The Colectivo believed that the perspective of both genders should be taken into consideration.

The need for women’s participation in the political process became more critical than ever for change to occur. Women are 53% of the population however they are underrepresented in political decision making. Though political representation increased from 1.3% in 1958 to 12% in 1998, it decreased to 8% in the 2002 elections. At municipal level, positions held by women decreased from 43% in 2003 to 41.6 % in 2004.

The Colectivo began to integrate other activities. It was necessary to create learning opportunities and engender action in women across the Cali area, focussing on feminism, empowerment, participation and the state. It was also necessary to understand and learn the roots of their culture, exploring how war is perceived, in order to influence the transformation of the present culture.

Initially the group started with reflections on subjects like the International Humanitarian Right, pacifism, civil resistance, the negotiation process, and displacement, all from a feminist perspective. The debate has increasingly become richer due to the diversity of the group. It now includes professionals of different NGOs, working class women, academics, students, and independent women. External lecturers have also been attending meetings.

Who forms the Colectivo?


The Colectivo is a network in the city of Cali. There is a core of 8-15 women who actively participate and a number of other women who join in from time to time. Each woman also brings with them the experience of the organisation they work for. Key members are Lucy (Teatro La Máscara), Julieth (Casa Cultural Tejiendo Sororidades), Adaljisa (Fundación Mavi), Elena (Fundación Paz y Bien), Reina and Vicenta (Casa Cultural El Chontaduro), Elena, Maria Ledi and Martha Lucia (Fundación Sí Mujer), Flor, Miriam and Martha (Grupo Amplio de Mujeres). There are also women not associated with any organisation.

The Colectivo is also associated to women peacemaking movements at the national and international level such as the Iniciativas de Mujeres por la Paz in Colombia.

What are the aims of the group?


Given the worsening situation of human rights and inequality in Colombia it is the goal and aim of the Colectivo to reinforce the structural changes necessary to secure the rights of women and provide an alternative to war and violence in Colombia.

In particular to:

Promote a collective reflection on the role of women in the cultural life of their communities particularly their responsibility to build a culture of nonviolence in all aspects of people’s lives, including the personal and domestic behaviour.

Contribute to the generation of peace and the construction of a more equal and just society by:

developing public awareness against armaments and violence eveloping strategies that can be implemented to pressure the Government and other combatants into abandoning their arms.

Raise awareness on gender issues and make the prevention of violence against women an absolute priority for the Government by: sensitising the press to gender issues and violence against women

working with Government personnel on these issues including women’s human rights

working with the military to develop measures to protect women’s rights and punish violence against women

publicising reports and research produced on the issue.

Support governmental and non-governmental bodies that provide services to women survivors of violence.

What are the main activities of the group?


The Colectivo has worked to bring the voices of women and marginalised groups to the negotiating table and to the forefront of dialogue. This included establishing communication with women in the guerrillas in order to make them aware of gender issues; the promotion of peaceful nonviolent solutions to social problems; developing and implementing public relations and communication strategies to pressure the Colombian Government and the other armed actors to take women’s issues into consideration; and the mobilisation of communities to raise awareness of the obstacles to peace.

The organisation has developed workshops with indigenous women, looking at their situation in Colombia. This has involved analysing the violence they suffer in their homes, organisations and from the armed groups. They have been building an alliance with a group in Bogotá named Women and Armed Conflict to raise awareness of the situation of women in conflict. They are also building a coalition with the regional Ombudsperson and the regional office of UN for Human Rights to work together in a roundtable called “Women and Violence”.

The Colectivo’s main goal is to continue working on their “Violence against Women” initiative, emphasising sexual harassment against women. The group believes there is a need to make this issue the focus of public discussions and to call on the government to collect gender statistics on women’s involvement in the Colombian conflict and how to prevent it.

Campaigning against the rape of women as result of the armed conflict in Colombia has been and still is an important activity. This includes writing to the heads of the armed groups, the government and other organisations in order to discuss this issue and investigate and punish rapists.

The Colectivo continues their tireless campaign of addressing human rights and mobilising communities by raising awareness of the obstacles to peace. Their main aim is to continue to pressure for negotiations between the government and the guerrillas.

The Colectivo launches campaigns denouncing violence against women. They hold forums, press conferences, performances and symbolic silent protests in public spaces and on TV, and circulates official notices as well as writing to the media.

To engender and develop a peace process in Cali, the Colectivo works together with other peace groups, for example they support the Planton de Mujeres de Negro (Women in Black ) and Ruta Pacifica de Mujeres (Women’s Peaceful Road). As part of Mujeres de Negro every last Thursday of the month they station outside the Government building in a central plaza in Cali, standing in silence and dressed in black to express nonviolent resistance to those with weapons that has converted the bodies of women into war booty.