The U’wa people believe that as guardians of “Mother Earth,” they must maintain the balance between the world above and the world below, between the sky, land, and subsoil. For the U’wa, natural resources such as oil, gas, coal, and other minerals are sacred. Oil is the blood of Mother Earth and for this reason, the U’wa believe it should not be extracted. They believe that extractive industries create disharmony and disequilibrium, leading to the disappearance of culture and species, including humans.
Since the early 1990s, the U’wa have consistently fought to protect their territory against oil and gas companies, including Occidental Petroleum and Ecopetrol. The Colombian State has approved the exploration and exploitation of oil, coal, and other minerals in projects that overlap with U’wa ancestral territory, including the Indigenous U’wa Reservation. Meanwhile, the Colombian State has failed to recognize the U’wa’s right to collective property over their ancestral territory or guarantee U’wa land rights over territory that has been formally recognized for decades. The U’wa have brought repeated domestic complaints against the lack of free, prior, and informed consent for projects on their land, demanding recognition and protection of their land rights against third parties. The U’wa also engaged in large-scale protests and occupations of oil company installations on their land, which the Colombian State has violently repressed.
In 1997, the U’wa presented a petition to the Interamerican Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) alleging violations by the Government of Colombia for violations of international human rights based on the State’s failure to recognize and protect U’wa territory and for allowing extractive projects on U’wa land, violating the U’wa nation’s beliefs, and harming their cultural integrity and risking their cultural survival. In July 2015, the IACHR accepted the U’wa’s petition against the Government of Colombia finding that the Commission had competence to review the petition. EarthRights is a co-petitioner in the case along with the National Indigenous Organization of Colombia (ONIC), the Association of Traditional U’wa Authorities and Cabildos (AsoU’wa), and the Jose Alvear Restrepo Lawyers Collectivo (CAJAR). We also provide legal support to the community, advising the U’wa on legal strategy, conducting legal research, drafting and submitting filings, and presenting facts to the IACHR in support of the U’wa’s case.
In November 2019, the IACHR issued its decision on the merits of the U’wa’s petition, finding that Colombia’s actions do, in fact, violate the human rights of the U’wa, recommending that the State take all measures necessary to guarantee the U’wa’s rights to its territory and culture. The IACHR found that Colombia had violated the U’wa’s right to collective property, as well as the right to free, prior, and informed consent (including violations to the right to access of information and political rights), the cultural rights of the U’wa nation, and their right to judicial protection.
In October 2020, the IACHR sent the case to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, finding that Colombia had not fulfilled the recommendations necessary to remedy the rights violations the U’wa have suffered.
Since the early 1990s, the U’wa have consistently fought to protect their territory against oil and gas companies, including Occidental Petroleum and Ecopetrol. The Colombian State has approved the exploration and exploitation of oil, coal, and other minerals in projects that overlap with U’wa ancestral territory, including the Indigenous U’wa Reservation. Meanwhile, the Colombian State has failed to recognize the U’wa’s right to collective property over their ancestral territory or guarantee U’wa land rights over territory that has been formally recognized for decades. The U’wa have brought repeated domestic complaints against the lack of free, prior, and informed consent for projects on their land, demanding recognition and protection of their land rights against third parties. The U’wa also engaged in large-scale protests and occupations of oil company installations on their land, which the Colombian State has violently repressed.
In 1997, the U’wa presented a petition to the Interamerican Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) alleging violations by the Government of Colombia for violations of international human rights based on the State’s failure to recognize and protect U’wa territory and for allowing extractive projects on U’wa land, violating the U’wa nation’s beliefs, and harming their cultural integrity and risking their cultural survival. In July 2015, the IACHR accepted the U’wa’s petition against the Government of Colombia finding that the Commission had competence to review the petition. EarthRights is a co-petitioner in the case along with the National Indigenous Organization of Colombia (ONIC), the Association of Traditional U’wa Authorities and Cabildos (AsoU’wa), and the Jose Alvear Restrepo Lawyers Collectivo (CAJAR). We also provide legal support to the community, advising the U’wa on legal strategy, conducting legal research, drafting and submitting filings, and presenting facts to the IACHR in support of the U’wa’s case.
In November 2019, the IACHR issued its decision on the merits of the U’wa’s petition, finding that Colombia’s actions do, in fact, violate the human rights of the U’wa, recommending that the State take all measures necessary to guarantee the U’wa’s rights to its territory and culture. The IACHR found that Colombia had violated the U’wa’s right to collective property, as well as the right to free, prior, and informed consent (including violations to the right to access of information and political rights), the cultural rights of the U’wa nation, and their right to judicial protection.
In October 2020, the IACHR sent the case to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, finding that Colombia had not fulfilled the recommendations necessary to remedy the rights violations the U’wa have suffered.
Note: In the Inter-American System, attorneys and NGOs often act as petitioners on behalf of other beneficiaries.
Association of Traditional Authorities and Cabildos (Asociación de Autoridades Tradicionales y Cabildos U’wa, AsoU’wa),
National Indigenous Organization of Colombia (Organización Nacional Indigena de Colombia, ONIC),
José Alvear Restrepo Lawyers Collective (Colectivo de Abogados Jose Alvear Restrepo, CAJAR),
EarthRights International
Association of Traditional Authorities and Cabildos (Asociación de Autoridades Tradicionales y Cabildos U’wa, AsoU’wa),
National Indigenous Organization of Colombia (Organización Nacional Indigena de Colombia, ONIC),
José Alvear Restrepo Lawyers Collective (Colectivo de Abogados Jose Alvear Restrepo, CAJAR),
EarthRights International
State of Colombia
Association of Traditional Authorities and Cabildos (Asociación de Autoridades Tradicionales y Cabildos U’wa, AsoU’wa), National Indigenous Organization of Colombia (Organización Nacional Indigena de Colombia, ONIC), José Alvear Restrepo Lawyers Collective (Colectivo de Abogados Jose Alvear Restrepo, CAJAR), EarthRights International.
Occidental Petroleum Corp. (Oxy) is a U.S. oil corporation that was active in and around U’wa territory from the early 1980s until May 2002. Oxy built the Caño Limón pipeline, which crossed U’wa territory and was granted the license for the Samoré Block.
Ecopetrol is the Colombian-state-owned oil company that took over from Oxy and has proposed exploration and exploitation of the Gibraltar, Siriri, and Catleya areas. Ecopetrol is currently operating a gas plant in U’wa territory.
Ecopetrol is the Colombian-state-owned oil company that took over from Oxy and has proposed exploration and exploitation of the Gibraltar, Siriri, and Catleya areas. Ecopetrol is currently operating a gas plant in U’wa territory.
This is the first case presented to the Inter-American Court on the violation of the territorial and cultural rights of indigenous peoples in Colombia. The case deals with a number of interrelated issues relating to the rights of the U’wa Nation to its territory, including natural resources. The case raises issues regarding the consolidation and titling of the U’wa territory, including their ancestral territory, recognized by the colonial titles granted by Spain in 1661. The U’wa territory overlaps with a Protected Natural Area, and the resolution of the question about the administration of the overlapping territory, is essential to guarantee the right of the U’wa to self-determination.
The case will also develop the right to free, prior and informed consent, required to guarantee the physical and cultural survival of indigenous peoples when they intend to implement large-scale development or investment plans, including exploration and exploitation licenses, in their territories.
The U’wa have also been negatively affected by militarization and the repression of their right to protest. The State has not guaranteed the cultural rights of the Nation, putting at risk its possibility of surviving as a people in consideration of the facts of the case, by not recognizing the cultural traditions of the U’wa, imposing unilateral consultation processes and not guaranteeing resources proper courts.
The case will also develop the right to free, prior and informed consent, required to guarantee the physical and cultural survival of indigenous peoples when they intend to implement large-scale development or investment plans, including exploration and exploitation licenses, in their territories.
The U’wa have also been negatively affected by militarization and the repression of their right to protest. The State has not guaranteed the cultural rights of the Nation, putting at risk its possibility of surviving as a people in consideration of the facts of the case, by not recognizing the cultural traditions of the U’wa, imposing unilateral consultation processes and not guaranteeing resources proper courts.
TIMELINE
BROADCAST OF THE HEARING BEFORE THE INTER-AMERICAN COURT (APRIL 2023)
