Excmo. Sr. Presidente Gustavo Petro Urrego President of the Republic of Colombia contacto@presidencia.gov.co | Sr. Fiscal Francisco Barbosa Delgado Attorney General of Colombia |
September 25, 2022
Dear Sirs:
We write today calling for justice for the assassination of oil worker union leader Sibares Lamprea Vargas, age 42, in Barrancabermeja, Santander Department. He was Secretary of Administrative Affairs of the Unión Sindical Obrera de la Industria del Petróleo (USO). Serving as a security guard at the Ecopetrol refinery in Barrancabermeja, he was also a member of the Association of Security Guards of Barrancabermeja and Magdalena Medio.
Sibares Lamprea Vargas was driving home from his father's funeral the evening of September 10. When he was passing near Camilo Torres Park, he was intercepted by two gunmen on a motorcycle who approached the car window and shot him repeatedly, at least five times. Witnesses called an ambulance, but he was pronounced dead moments after arriving at the hospital.
It is unknown whether Sibares Lamprea Vargas had been receiving any death threats before the incident.
We urge that you
- conduct a thorough and transparent investigation into the killing of Sibares Lamprea Vargas—with the goal of finding both the material and intellectual authors of the crime—publish the results, and bring those responsible to justice
- urge Ecopetrol to initiate its own investigation
- offer security measures to other USO leaders and union members in Barrancabermeja, in strict accordance with their wishes
Sincerely,
Brian J. Stefan Szittai and Christine Stonebraker-Martínez, Co-Coordinators
InterReligious Task Force on Central America & Colombia
3606 Bridge Ave., Cleveland OH 44113 USA/EEUU
copies:
Luis Gilberto Murillo, Ambassador of Colombia to the US ~ via email, US mail
Alfonso Prada Gil, Minister of the Interior ~ via email
Joel Hernández García, Rapporteur for Colombia , Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) ~ via email, US mail
Soledad García Muñoz, Special Rapporteur on Economic, Social, Cultural, Environmental Rights (IACHR) ~ via email, US mail
UN: Juliette De Rivero, Representative in Colombia of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights ~ via email
US Embassy: Francisco Palmieri (Chargé d’Affaires, ad interim); Kristen Farrell (human rights); Mariel Chatman (vulnerable populations) ~ via email
US State Department: Christine Russell, Desk Officer for Colombia ~ via email
US Senators Brown & Portman ~ via email
US Representatives Beatty, Brown, Gibbs, Gonzalez, Johnson, Jordan, Joyce, Kaptur, Latta, Ryan ~ via email
12 SEP 2022_Telesur_Colombia
