AMERICA/COLOMBIA-A priest elected head of the Regional Council of the Indigenous in Cauca

Popayán (Agenzia Fides) - For the first time in the history of the Regional Council of the indigenous of Cauca, a priest was elected as its highest authority. It has to do with Father Jesus Chavez, a native of Tierradentro, the town of Inza. The priest was a leader of the Paez community - Belalcázar, he was President of the organization Nasa Chatcha and is now responsible for the largest association of indigenous communities of Cauca, one of the most important in Colombia. According to the local press, Father Chavez will undertake a vigorous defense of the rights of indigenous communities and their territories, in view of increasing illegal armed groups and the persistence of armed conflict in the country.
The area of Cauca has been an area of conflict for many years. On May 24, an-18-year old young man died and there have been 17 serious injuries due to violent clashes between indigenous communities and Afro-Colombian communities. These clashes are caused by the disputed land property of San Rafael, between Buenos Aires and Caserío Santander de Quilichao, in the department of Cauca.
On 29 May, a bomb exploded in the police barracks Jambalò, a village in the Andes of Colombia, also in the department of Cauca, killing three people by the RAFC (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia). Populations of Jambaló, Toribio, Calot, Tacueyó and other small towns that are in the area, live in constant fear and are under threat also because of their geographical position which makes the area a vital corridor for the RAFC. From the Andes of the Cordillera to the Pacific, the RAFC have in fact traced many paths of communication to move and carry any type of goods, also to detect the proximity to Cali, Colombia's third largest city. (EC) (Agenzia Fides 31/05/2011)
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