September 3, 2004

BOGOTA, Colombia - Numerous threats levied against the life and personal integrity of Evangelical philosopher and academic Lilia Solano, former president of the Latin American Theological Fraternity (FTL), has led diverse organizations to request urgent action to protect her.

As director of the Justice and Life Project, a non government human rights organization that protects and defend the rights of sectors affected by the armed conflict in Colombia, Solano staged a protest during a congressional session last July to denounce plans to grant impunity to paramilitary members in negotiations with the government.

In recent months, professor Solano has been the victim of harassment and threats against her life and personal integrity, which have increased dramatically in recent days, according to the "Josi Alvear Restrepo" Lawyers Collective.

Solano is also coordinator of the Camilo Torres Restrepo department in the Law, Political and Social Sciences Faculty at the National University of Colombia.

In mid-2003 she organized a cycle of conferences about the history of violence in Colombia, which brought together academics, historians and representatives from social organizations and non government Human Rights groups, among others.

Before the inauguration of these conferences, the National University's Law Faculty received several telephone calls, saying that people's lives would be in danger during the conferences.

In the same conferences, in September 2003 a conference was organized called "Monologue and negotiation with paramilitaries," with the participation, among others, of sociologist Alfredo Molano and members of the Jose Alvear Restrepo Lawyers Collective. Solano coordinated the event.

Following this conference a website maintained by one of the largest paramilitary groups in the country made specific references to the organizers, and in particular to Professor Solano, who they accused of being an "ideologue of the narco-guerrillas" and of "dirtying the minds of the students."

When the paramilitary leaders and presumed drug traffickers Salvatore Mancuso, Ramsn Isaza and Roberto Duque Gaviria, alias 'Ernesto Baez' had an audience in Congress last July 28, Solano, together with Ivan Cepeda, entered the legislature and protested the impunity that is sought for crimes against humanity committed by the AUC.

Minutes later they were evicted by the police while the families of the victims of the paramilitary forces and members of non government organizations came under attack outside of the Congress, in a joint action between the National Police and people brought from the provinces to support the visit of the paramilitaries.

These events were broadly reported by national and international communication media.

In recent weeks intimidating messages have increased on Solano's telephone and unknown men have been watching the Justice and Life Project offices.

The Jose Alvear Restrepo Lawyers association asked that the government recall its obligations regarding the security and protection of human rights defendants and take immediate, necessary and effective measures to ensure that the members of the Justice and Life Association can carry out their work without any danger.

Moreover, they lobbied authorities to adopt the necessary and effective measures to guarantee the life and personal integrity of Solano and called for an exhaustive investigation to identify the authors of these threats and that they be judged and severely sanctioned.

ALC News Service