The Ombudsman’s Office will mediate between the peasants and indigenous people who are facing each other in a protest in front of the Emerald Energy oil company facilities in the department of Caquetá.
This was announced this Thursday by the Ombudsman, Carlos Camargo, who assured that the body he directs maintains its disposition “as a mediator and channel for dialogue to solve the crisis and prevent acts of violence such as those that occurred in the last hours in inspection Los Pozos».
“We regret the confrontational situation that left a policeman and a farmer dead and several injured. Violent actions and de facto actions only generate more violence and do not facilitate spaces for dialogue between the parties to find agreements”, he added.
Likewise, Camargo said that the Ombudsman’s officials are accompanying “the 79 members of the public force and the nine employees of Emerald Energy” who were being held by the community.
“We reiterate our call to the National Government and to the peasant organizations that are mobilizing in the inspection of the wells to resume dialogue as a way to reach agreements and put an end to the de facto ways,” he said.
The protest that began weeks ago with the seizure of the facilities, located in the hamlet of Los Pozos, in the town of San Vicente del Caguan; However, on Wednesday the tension increased with the burning of part of the oil company and the intervention of Esmad, the police riot unit.
As a result, a peasant and a public force agent died, according to official figures, although other sources affirm that there may be four deaths.
The clashes led members of the opposition to ask for urgent government intervention on Thursday.
Indigenous and peasant communities accessed the oil company’s facilities to demand their rights to the land that Emerald Energy exploits.
The demonstrations began after a year and a half of waiting, the highway promised by local authorities and by the oil company, which allocated an investment for this project, was not built, said Wilman Fierro, councilor of San Vicente del Caguan. “Time passed and that need was not met,” he added.