CPTnet
December 15, 2004

COLOMBIA INVITATION TO PRAYER AND FASTING: Light in the Darkness

Six people were killed in the Opón during the month of December 2003.
Sadly, December in Colombia historically has not been the month of
celebration it should be. This year, the Advent season is again darkened by
the presence of armed actors who continue to create fear in the communities
of the Opón.

Community members fear that the beginning of the dry season this month will
increase the mobility and violent activities of armed groups. December is
also a month when many national and international organizations that operate
here reduce their activities, and the armed groups often take advantage of
their absence to commit acts of violence.

Part of the reason why armed groups fight for control of the Opón
territory is due to an oil pipeline that runs through it. The illegal gas
cartel
(protected by the paramilitaries) taps the pipeline and extracts thousands
of gallons of gas and other petroleum products each month. Money from the
sale of this gas funds paramilitary activities; other petroleum products are
used to process cocaine.

In addition to the tensions generated by armed groups, the people of the
Opón also face economic struggles. Corn has been the main cash crop in
the area for years. Currently the price of corn is near, or even below the
cost of production for a farmer in the Opón, largely due to imports of
cheap corn from other countries.

The city of Barrancabermeja also faces a possible new wave of violence,
should the paramilitaries that control the city become demobilized as part
of the their negotiations with the national government. People here fear
that the paramilitaries may intensify their activities before they put down
their guns. It is possible that in Barranca, in the Opón, and in
surrounding regions more assassinations and forced disappearances will occur
as part of paramilitaries "cleaning house." The intensification of violence
could also include increased activity around gas pipelines, more extortion
from private "security" companies in the neighbourhoods that threaten people
who do not pay protection money, and "social cleansing" that includes the
killing of thieves, drug users, street people, and homosexuals.

With these things in mind, during this Christmas season CPT Colombia invites
everyone to shine a light in the darkness by joining us in one or more
of the following actions:

1) Fast on Tuesday mornings reflecting on your role as peacemakers in
this world. Pray for the work of CPT in Colombia.

2) Pray Tuesday evenings around a candle. Pray for unity in the
communities of the Opón and the other communities in Colombia who are in
the process of unifying to confront nonviolently armed groups that threaten
them. Many sense that building community is the most hopeful way to create
a lasting peace with justice in Colombia.

3) For your meals on Tuesdays use only food that provides a just income
for those who produce it.

4) Fast from using gasoline on Tuesdays, remembering the violence that
the gas pipeline brings to the Opón region and Barrancabermeja.

The CPT Colombia team chose Tuesday as a day of action to coincide with the
fasting and prayer witness of CPT's Iraq team.