A new report by the coalition, ‘Colombia: Students in the firing line’, will be sent to MPs, universities and students’ unions across the country to raise awareness of the plight of Colombian students.
The report finds that:
- in the past three years alone (2006-8), a total of 99 human rights violations have been perpetrated against Colombian students,
- between 2006 and 2008, at least twelve Colombian university students were assassinated,
- in many cases the state security forces themselves are the perpetrators of the abuses, in others statements senior government officials put students in direct danger of attack, and in virtually all of the cases little or nothing has been done to bring the perpetrators to justice.
NUS, UCU and Justice for Colombia are calling for the UK Government to be bolder in its condemnation of human rights abuses in Colombia, to end assistance to the Colombian state security forces, and to make any trade benefits available to Colombia dependent on an end to the killings and other abuses perpetrated against students.
NUS President Wes Streeting said:
“Colombia is probably the most dangerous country in the world to be a student activist. It is completely unacceptable that at least twelve university students have been assassinated in Colombia in recent years, simply because of their political beliefs.
“The UK Government should give its full support to Colombian students and call for an end to these atrocities.”
Download the report and help NUS by writing to your MP condemning the British Governments approach to Colombia.