Colombia: Peasants Seize Unproductive Land in Cesar
We hereby share an unofficial translation of an article published by Nueva Democracia of Colombia on the 6th of May.
Peasants of Cesar seize unproductive land which has been administrated by SAE since more than 20 years ago
On May 5, peasants from the villages of Aguas Blancas, Valencia de Jesús, Las Casitas, El Cielo, and the surrounding areas of Valledupar decided to occupy the Caja de Ahorros #1 property, which belonged to the landlord Hugues Rodríguez and has been under the administration of the Special Assets Agency (SAE) for more than 20 years. This entity is responsible for administering, managing, and selling assets seized due to illicit activities, as well as for making these assets productive; however, this objective is often not met, as bureaucratic processes mean that years pass before these lands serve any productive purpose.
The peasants claim that this land serves no social, productive, or ecological purpose, and they are demanding that the SAE and the National Land Agency (ANT) intervene and immediately assign and hand over the land to them.
Hugues Rodríguez was convicted in 2007 for having ties to the Northern Bloc of the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC), and 61 of his properties—acquired through the dispossession of local peasants and paramilitary activities—were subject to asset forfeiture.
The peasants of Cesar have suffered daily oppression at the hands of big landlords who have seized their land, displaced them from their territory, and massacred and murdered them for demanding what belongs to them. which is why, tired of this mountain weighing on their backs, they have decided to rise up and fight under the slogans “Land for those who work it!” and “Reclaiming the land is our mandate!”
Finally, the land-reclaiming peasants call on grassroots organizations and activists to unite in defense of and support for their struggle for land—which is the only guarantee that peasants will truly own the land—and to stay informed about their struggle.
Below, we share the video of the public statement issued by the land-reclaiming peasants in Aguas Blancas:
