Strike by Afro-Colombians Leads to Partial Deal with Government

After six days of a general strike and three days of negotiations, the Colombian government Monday finally agreed to a few of the demands from social movements in the predominantly Afro-Colombian province of Choco, the poorest in the country.

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Among the measures, the government agreed to clear the debt of the only public hospital, San Francisco de Asis, as well as to provide public funding for roads linking the capital of the province, Quibdo, to two other major cities in the country, Medellin and Pereira.

Authorities also promised to inaugurate Quibdo's aqueduct meant to provide 95 percent of residents with drinking water, and build another 10 aqueducts for the rest of the province.

Other aspects of the partial deal included addressing security issues, the fight against corruption, and the establishment of mechanisms for more transparency in the management of public funds in the province.

During the negotiations Monday, about 100,000 Afro-Colombians marched in Quibdo and other cities in Colombia's Pacific province—the sixth day of a massive general strike that paralyzed businesses, transportation and schools.

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The Civic Committee for Salvation and Dignity, which called the general strike, is demanding “a systematic review of the economic model” that converted their province into Colombia's “most left behind despite being the wealthiest in the universe.”

The committee argues that the state has failed to comply with agreements reached in the past as the province still lacks basic infrastructure and public services. Roads to the main cities are commonly referred to as “death roads” because of the high rate of fatal accidents, and drinking water and electricity are not available in many parts of the province—13 out of 30 districts have electricity only a few hours per day.

The community is also urging the government to provide proper education and health services. The province only has one functioning hospital, which is going bankrupt.

These combined factors have made Choco the poorest province in the country—almost 63 percent of its residents live in poverty, according to the official estimate, and it has the highest rate of child malnutrition.

Although Colombia's ombudsman denounced the status quo in his last report on Choco's human rights situation, the government still denied any wrongdoing and refused to meet with the protesters until late Thursday, finally sending the vice minister of interior to Quibdo to start negotiations.

The committee warned it would continue the strike until agreement is reached on concrete measures to improve life for the province's people.