The communities of southern Chocó denounced that at least 25,000 people are confined in this region as a result of the armed strikes carried out by the ELN and the Clan del Golfo.
Leaders of this region asked the national government for help since they are without access to food, health and education.
They also assure that there are displacements in the area and that humanitarian aid has not arrived.
A commission from the Attorney General’s Office came to this department to speak with the community.
The entity evaluates with the national, departmental and municipal entities, immediate actions to ward off the humanitarian crisis.
The complaint
The leaders of the Afro and indigenous communities affected by the limitations on mobility imposed by the ELN guerrillas in the municipalities of Sipí, Novita and Istmina denounced before the public ministry that there are more than 25,000 people facing a humanitarian crisis in the region of the middle and lower San Juan, confined in their municipalities, without access to food, health or education.
From the territories they assure that until now the National Government has not given answers to the situation.
According to Jefferson Mena, Advisor to the Delegate Attorney for Ethnic Affairs, “we found, first of all, that the figures seem to be much higher than those known up to now. The communities are talking about more than 25,000 people confined or displaced. Today, the communities are complaining because there is a shortage of food in many of the municipalities that are confined or in the places where they have been displaced. It is a chaotic situation that is being experienced. The department does not have the resources with which to deal with this situation, nor do the mayors, and the Government is not present”.
The communities pointed out that the department is not only experiencing the armed strike of the ELN, but also denounces an armed strike by the Gaitanista Self-Defense Forces of Colombia. L
The inhabitants ask for help from the National Government due to shortages in confined regions and populations affected by displacement.
The Commission
The special commission of the Office of the Attorney General of the Nation arrived in Quibdó to evaluate with the entities of the national, departmental and municipal administrations, immediate actions to ward off the crisis.
The special group designated by the Attorney General will meet with national entities, the government, municipalities and public forces, to define actions that allow the lives of the affected people to be safeguarded.
The group will meet with representatives of the affected communities, ombudsmen and the Ombudsman’s Office, to find out in detail about the violations against Human Rights that these populations have been suffering, their most urgent needs for attention and the possibilities that exist to reach the territories.
Based on the analysis of the information collected, the Attorney General’s Office will immediately issue calls and alerts to obtain urgent and effective attention from the responsible authorities, according to the competence of each of the agencies that are part of this commission.