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PBI’s protection capacity is made stronger and more effective by the international community’s support for human rights work.

2021: Getting back to walking alongside defenders

In 2021 Colombia continued to feel the effects of the global pandemic of Covid-19. Notable among them was the extreme vulnerability faced by indigenous and ethnic-territorial communities, and by individuals, organisations and communities who defend human rights. The first half of the year was also defined by an increase in violence and human rights abuses within the context of the National Strike, a social protest that rocked the country between April to July, and which was brutally repressed1 . In response, PBI Colombia adapted its biosecurity protocols in order to continue accompanying human rights defenders in what remains to be one of the most dangerous countries in the world to defend human rights2 . Throughout 2021, the easing of mobility restrictions allowed PBI Colombia to slowly return to physically accompany human rights defenders threatened for their work throughout the country’s different territories. Once the country reopened borders, PBI was able to strengthen its field teams and, in line with PBI’s annual operational plan,was able to fulfill 80% of the requests received from the organisations and communities. The three field teams carried out 229 accompaniments and international observation activities (corresponding to 486 days of presence alongside human rights defenders), as well as 116 visits to the different organisations’ headquarters. In more than 200 separate meetings, the teams maintained regular contact with the organisations in order to monitor and analyse risks and to devise protection strategies. It’s worth highlighting that 49% of the accompaniments were of women human rights defenders, 47% of men and 4% were accompaniments of mixed groups. In 2021 the PBI area to Support the Reconstruction of Social Fabric (ARTS in Spanish) held 40 days of workshops with human rights defence organisations and collectives. The main themes they dealt with were psychosocial support, self-care strategies and digital security, all with a gender-based approach. The decrease in the number of workshops held in comparison to previous years can be explained by the impact of the pandemic: after a long period of time in which the core approach of the ARTS team’s work had been impacted by the need to hold workshops virtually, the area faced the task of renewing face-toface activities. ARTS also held 87 days of workshops within PBI itself, actively supporting the strengthening of team dynamics and helping to mitigate the impacts of the pandemic which had included an increase in staff turnover. PBI’s protection capacity is made stronger and more effective by the international community’s support for human rights work. The work of the visibility area focuses on garnering this support and includes meeting with international organisations, members of the diplomatic corps accredited in Colombia, political institutions and governments. PBI has also maintained its work disseminating information by sending restricted publications to its worldwide support network, and raising awareness of the work of Colombian organisations through its social networks and blog. Faced with the escalating levels of violence3 and the growing trend of murders and threats against social leaders since the signing of the Peace Accord4, the number of accompaniment requests continued to rise with PBI’s accompaniment remaining both relevant and necessary for the accompanied organisations.

1. Human Rights Watch: Colombia: brutalidad policial contra manifestantes, 9 June, 2021. 2. Frontline Defenders: Global Analysis, 23 February, 2022. 3. Fundación Ideas para la Paz: Ni paz ni guerra: inseguridad y violencia en el gobierno de Duque, 14 May, 2022. 4. Indepaz: 5 años del Acuerdo de Paz: Balance en cifras de la violencia en los territorios, 24 November, 2021.