Shocking news and dreadful photos from the inaccessible areas of the rain-forest in the north-west of Colombia reached the Society for Threatened Peoples STP (Gesellschaft für bedrohte Völker GfbV) and the environmental organisation "SOS Rain-forest”. In an E-mail the Enberá Indians reported that several of their settlements in the territory of the Choco were attacked at the end of January 2010 partly with helicopters and that 22 villagers were killed, among them at least eight children. The contacts sent a dreadful picture of the blood-covered corpses of three Enberá children who had been shot. The picture was taken by a camera which the Austrian environmentalist and President of the "SOS Rain-Forest”, Richard Weixler, had given to an Enberá village for the documentation of attacks. It is not clear whether the criminals were paramilitary or military. Since it is only the army which possesses helicopters it seems fairly clear that the Colombian army was responsible for at least some of the crimes. Together with the "SOS Rain-forest” the STP calls on the Colombian government to set up immediately an investigation commission to clear up the crimes.

"The attacks are directly connected with the so-called development plans for this region”, reported Richard Weixlerr, who visited the Enberá in December 2009. The Columbian government granted concessions to the Muriel Mining Corp.MMC ( USA), AngloGold Ashanti ( South Africa ) and Glencore ( Switzerland ) for the clearance of 16,000 hectares of rain-forest in the regions of Choco and Antiquia for the mining of copper, gold and molybdenum. "This concession, which is valid for 30 years, was according to information received from Colombia , given illegally, as 11,000 hectares of this region are anchored in the constitution as being the land of the Enberá and in accordance with Convention 169 of the International Labour Organisation ILO must be given especial protection”, criticised the STP contributor Hans Bogenreiter. Richard Weixler warned: "The greatest bio-diversity of this region is threatened with extinction because the poisonous matter used in mining will contaminate the rivers.”

The 270 Enberá families still living in the north of Colombia have emphasised in a vote carried out by human rights and environment agencies in spite of the threatening presence of military and police their refusal to give up their land for the mining of mineral resources. The reason is that their culture would disappear without the rain-forest, which gives them all they need. Many groups refuse all contact with the outside world. However several families have already been removed by force and some Enberá have in desperation committed suicide. Hundreds of Enberá have been murdered in recent years for refusing to cooperate with the guerrilla forces of the paramilitary supporting the government in Colombia.

Richard Weixler will be glad to provide further information at tel. ++43 7242 666 92.