14th January 2010, SINTRAINAGRO, Ciénaga, Magdalena

185 workers at the Palo Alto plantation, belonging to Palo Alto Gnecco Espinosa Investments, in the Ciénaga district of Magdalena province, were evicted from their workplace at gun-point, leaving one of the workers injured.

With a list in their hands and asking where to find two named workers, José Luis Soto Jaramillo and Juan Carlos Torres Muñoz, the armed men shouted “get out of here because we've come to kill you - no hiding!”; then they started to shoot, wounding Miguel Augusto Cuenca Torregroza as a result of splinters caused by the impact of the bullets.

The National Agroindustrial Workers' Union, Sintrainagro, denounces this clear violation of workers' rights by the company. By resorting to acts of violence the company is also violating human rights, all because its employees exercised their right to freely join a trade union.

The workers have been protesting since 23rd December 2009 about non-payment of wages, bonuses, redundancy payments, family grant payments, funeral services and seven years of employers' pension and healthcare contributions.

The Palo Alto Gnecco Espinosa Investments company's plantation, managed by Ramón Tovar, produces hearts of palm and is situated in the parish of  San Juan de Palos Prieto, in the municipality of Pueblo Viejo, near Santa Marta.

The acting President of Sintrainagro Hernán Correa Miranda, condemned the events and announced that the union would call for support in denouncing the violence from the international community, human rights organisations and the ILO,  but that there is a need for an immediate action to reestablish respect for workers' right to freedom of association. A full investigation of the incident is also required by national and provincial governments.  “We need to take appropriate legal action against this company”, added the trade union leader.

For her part, Adela Torres, General Secretary of Sintrainagro, said that it seemed unthinkable that in the second decade of the 21st century armed men should enter a plantation firing guns just like used to happen in the most painful decades of Colombia's history: “This kind of act demonstrates a flagrant disregard for human rights”, said the workers' leader.

Source: SINTRAINAGRO

SINTRAINAGRO has condemned the violence and called for solidarity action - and their global union federation, the IUF, has now launched a major online campaign .  Please take a moment to show your support.