The Federation of Associations of Indigenous Councils of Chocó, Fedeorewa, issued a statement denouncing that members of the illegal armed group AGC, Gaitanista Self-Defense Forces of Colombia, twice detained several indigenous educators who were passing through the Napipí river, in the municipality of Bojayá.
It affirms that on August 6, 2023, at the mouth of the Napipí River, the educators were interrogated and intimidated about the number of boats, people, and the objective of the activity to be carried out on the river. “The illegal armed group insistently stated that they were the ‘authority in that area’ and that their duty was to exercise control over the people who navigate the Napipí River.”
On August 10, 2023, educators from the Fedeorewa were forcibly detained for 40 minutes in the waters of the Napipí river by members of the AGC, after the indigenous people refused to allow them to board the boats where they were traveling. In addition, they threatened the leader of the indigenous guard.
“We demand from the national government guarantees of free mobility, and the development of organizational processes,” notes the Fedeorewa statement.