15. In the press release of May 1, 1987, published by El Colombiano, it was informed that in the course of a year, 32 union leaders were killed in Colombia. These are events that have allegedly been reported in the V national forum on human rights, which was held in Bogotá, and it was highlighted that “the main directors of the worker unions were threatened with death, at least once, during this last year.”9 16. Specifically, regarding the incidence of the forced disappearance in the context of the armed conflict, the IACHR observes that the Observatory of Memory and Conflict (Observatorio de Memoria y Conflicto) (hereinafter the “OMC”) of the National Centre of Historical Memory (hereinafter the “CNMH”) has documented 60,630 “forced disappearances” between 1970 and 201510. The profile of the victims of forced disappearances in Colombia, according to the database of the OMC, indicates the roles of the activists or political leaders (576) and the union workers (259), among others 11 . According to the CNMH, these forced disappearances were executed during the implementation of the National Security Doctrine already mentioned in the context in which trade unions fall under the category of “internal enemy.”12 In its Annual Report from 2016, the IACHR highlighted that the information received regarding the disappearance of more than 60,000 persons in Colombia, registered since 1970, has not been translated into a real, effective and long-lasting response from the State in order to fight impunity, also having a lack of results in relation to the location of remains, whereabouts or destination of the victims.13 B. Context regarding political violence in Colombia 17. The IACHR has been monitoring the situation of political violence in Colombia since the eighties. On April 1980, it conducted a visit on site and subsequent successive visits until May 1981.14 In its Annual Report from 1996, by referring to Colombia’s situation, the IACHR highlighted that the attacks against persons who work on human rights, political parties as an alternative to the traditional ones, and authorities elected at local level, continued in 1996. It notified the following: Non-governmental forces consider that the 65% of the political killings are responsibility of the armed forces and paramilitary groups. Such sources estimate that the number of violations committed by the security forces of the Colombian State dropped in 1996, constituting approximately from 8% to 18% of all the political killings in which the attackers have been identified. While the number of political killings committed by State forces decreased, the number of such violations committed by paramilitary forces increased. Non-governmental forces state that paramilitaries are responsible for the 48% to 59% of the extrajudicial killings due to political reasons. The Ombudsman in Colombia has informed that the paramilitary activity increased 62% since 1992. These statistics should be analyzed in the context of serious signs that relate the killings committed by paramilitaries with the complicity of individual soldiers or military units that tend to demonstrate that the Government has not acted in an adequate way to control the paramilitaries.15 18. In subsequent reports on the Human Rights Situation in Colombia, the IACHR has continued referring to the situation of political violence in the country. In this sense, it affirmed that the magnitude of the violations to the right to life “have been characterized by a clear political orientation, as many of the victims have been persons who supported political positions opposed to the government or who had showed their discrepancy with it in political acts. In violations of the right to life, several methods have been employed, such Annex 12. Press release “In the last year, 32 union workers were murdered” published by El Colombiano on May 1, 1987. Annex to the communication from the petitioners received on February 18, 1992. 10 National Centre of Historical Memory (2016), until their finding. The drama of forced disappearance in Colombia, CNMH, Bogotá. p. 74. 11 National Centre of Historical Memory (2016), ibid. p. 86. 12 National Center of Historical Memory. Forced disappearance Volume II: Tracks and Faces of the Forced Disappearance (1970-2010). Bogotá: National Printing House, 2013. pp. 137. 13 IACHR. Annual Report of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights 2016. Chapter V. OEA/Ser.L/V/II. Doc. 2015, March 2017. para. 47. 14 IACHR, Second Report on the Human Rights Situation in Colombia., October 14, 1993. 15 IACHR, Annual Report of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights from 1996, OEA/Ser.L/V/II.95. doc. Rev. No. 7 dated March 14, 1997, p.p. 633. 9 4