As part of a six-member Solidarity Center delegation, Florida State AFL-CIO Vice President Mike Williams learned about Colombian workers’ constant struggle for social and economic justice—and why U.S workers need to hear their story.

Day 8—We started the day at 9:00 am in the office of the president of the oil workers union, USO, where we spoke with his officers and a few rank and file members. I noticed pictures hanging on the wall by his desk in the following order: Stalin, Engels, Marx, Chavez, Lenin. On the opposite wall was a picture of “Che” Guevara. We heard the 85-year history of USO, which represents various units of workers in the petroleum industry. Each member of the Executive Committee recently received death threats and a notice of being placed on the list of enemies of Colombia’s paramilitary. USO’s president survived a recent assassination attempt. We heard about community involvement, co-ops, temporary workers, fired workers, opposition to the U.S.-Colombia Free Trade Agreement, and on-the-job injuries to untrained subcontractors.

The next group of workers we met with had been fired during a strike on the national oil company. The workers told of their peaceful action that was met with the military and riot police. Many workers were injured and jailed. Over 200 workers illegally lost their jobs. After domestic and international legal action, about half were placed back on the job. The others were blacklisted from all work in the region for 10 years. Since the protest, the military has 24-hour presence at the job locations. The wife of one worker tearfully told us how the violation of her husband’s rights has dramatically impacted their family. It was an emotional outpouring of the hardships resulting from union busting.

For lunch we traveled to the home of a subcontracted oil worker. The U.S. company abandoned many buildings when it moved operations a decade ago. Colombian workers moved in and squatted on the property. Such was the home of the worker, who provided us a typical meal: stewed goat, rice, and yucca. We relaxed in the shade of a tree and drank a couple of bottles of the local beer. A wonderful family treated us very special. We were thankful.
 
Driving for about an hour, we reached higher elevations where African palms, rubber trees, and coal mining are the local industries. Upon arriving in the community of Yarima, we found hundreds of workers and their families waiting for us. The meeting was held in the assembly hall of the town square. The hall is a circular thatched frame structure, about 30 feet in diameter, open on the sides, with a concrete floor and a knee-high concrete wall for seating. Imagine a huge tiki hut without any moving air. We heard tale after tale of sincere concerns regarding violations of worker and human rights. The workers talked about the 75 days of protest against the palm oil companies that do not give anything to the communities, violate worker rights, and destroy the local environment. Each speaker asked us to help with their plight by using the AFL-CIO’s ability to apply international pressure on the Colombian government.

After the meeting adjourned, we mixed in the town square with what seemed to be the entire community. The excitement caused by our visit was tangible. Every member of the delegation moved around with a crowd of children and families following our every footstep. There were many handshakes, hugs, and words of encouragement and friendship. Tim spoke with a young woman who had previously spoken at the meeting. With Samantha interpreting, the young woman said, “This town is the most beautiful place in the world.” Tim was thinking, “How can this be with such conditions?” Then the young woman said, “If you travel down the road for five minutes, you will not see poverty, you will see misery!”

Three months prior to our meeting, an assassination attempt was made on the president of the USO during a solidarity rally in the same assembly hall in which our meeting was held. All official police presence disappeared and two armed men attempted the assassination. The president’s two bodyguards, the same two on loan to us, subdued and disarmed the assassins. The assassins were not arrested or charged. When the president left after his assassination attempt, the community escorted him on the 45-minute ride to the main road with mopeds and vehicles in front and back. With the same two bodyguards in our delegation, the community provided the same escort for us to the main road. We felt safe and among our own people.

Click on the links below to read the rest of the daily logs:

Day 1, July 20: The Journey Begins
Day 2, July 21: We Meet True Worker and Human Rights Champions
Day 3, July 22: Colombian Miners: “We Are Treated Like Pieces of Coal”
Day 4, July 23: “What Can We Do that Has Some Meaning?”
Day 5, July 24: Meeting the “Forgotten” Workers
Day 6, July 25: “For Union Workers, Our Government Has Abandoned Us!”
Day 7, July 26: Worker Solidarity: “Do Not Forget Juan’s Face!”
Day 9, July 28: An Informative Political Briefing  
Day 10, July 29: “The Circle of Death” and Other Issues  
Day 11, July 30: A Not-So-Sweet Homecoming