Additionally, the Commission mentioned in its request that it had learned that “in recent days, a
small group of soldiers from Brigade 17 had returned to the area without returning to provide
direct perimeter control of the humanitarian zones, that some soldiers had indicated that it would
be impossible for new troops to arrive, and that added to this, a group of approximately forty
paramilitary members were permanently located behind the Camelias-El Tesoro humanitarian
zone and in the Caño Claro-Andalucía humanitarian zone.” In this regard, it indicated that while
the State has reported on “certain efforts intended to partially fulfill the obligations of protection
established by the Court, [...] the facts on the ground [...] have demonstrated and continue to
demonstrate the inefficacy of the implementation of these measures, and demonstrate the need
to protect more persons in the same zone on the grounds that they face the same risk factors.”
12.
Additionally, the Commission indicated that it had learned that “grave threats and
instances of harassment have taken place against members of various humanitarian and
biodiversity zones, some of which are not beneficiaries of provisional measures.” Moreover, it
mentioned that “the families that comprise the Humanitarian Zone of Caño Manso have been
subject to numerous threats from alleged paramilitary members who are well-known in the
region, as well as from the employees of businessmen in the area.” In this regard, “according to
the information available, several inhabitants of the smaller Caño Manso councils had their lives
directly threatened. This was the case with Santander Nisperuza, with interrogations by alleged
paramilitary members of three farmers in the area - Miguel Mercado, Mario Mercado and Luis
Solipaz – and with death threats faced by farmer Jesus David, who was threatened at gunpoint by
alleged paramilitary members.” The Commission mentioned that “additionally, these residents of
Caño Manso had suffered violations to their community spaces and grave infringements to their
right to food.” It indicated that the members of the humanitarian zones of Caracolí and Argenito
Díaz “have been victims of violations of their community spaces as the result of numerous
attempts to make them vacate and through attacks by bad-faith occupants that destroyed their
crops.” It noted that “some leaders of these communities also received grave threats.” In this
regard, the Commission mentioned the death of Mr. Argenito Diaz, which took place on January
13, 2010. Regarding the Camelias-El Tesoro humanitarian zone, the Commission pointed out that
it had been “informed of the continual harassment to which the members of the community had
been subjected by bad-faith occupants that had taken the lands of the smaller council of
Camelias, and particularly, the grave violation of the biodiversity zone of the Tuberquia family,
current beneficiary of the provisional measures.” The Commission “emphasiz[ed] that currently,
dozens of alleged paramilitary groups remain in the areas surrounding the Camelias-El Tesoro
Humanitarian Zone.”
13.
The Commission pointed out that its request “was based on the aforementioned serious
and current grave facts and recent events, in addition to the risk factors on which the original
request was based and that affect a significant number of families. Those families have formed
humanitarian and biodiversity zones, which are fully identifiable spaces, as a mechanism for
protecting their rights to life, humane treatment and community integrity.”
14.
In more precise terms, the Inter-American
situations in support of its request, namely:
Commission singled out five different
a)
the “[i]ncreased number of families within those benefiting from the provisional
measures as a result of new unions.” Regarding this, the Commission argued that “the
existence of new members and families within the families that are already beneficiaries of
provisional measures is the result of the socio-cultural and family dynamics of these
human groups [...]. [I]t is evident that for them, risk factors have been identified that
result from their close connections with the situation of extreme gravity and urgency that
justifies their recognition as beneficiaries.” Therefore, it requested that the number of
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