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{{Infobox terrorist attack
{{Infobox civilian attack
|title = Bojayá massacre
| title = Bojayá massacre
⚫
| partof = the [[Colombian conflict]]
|image = {{Location map many | Colombia
| image = {{Location map many | Colombia
| width = 300
| width = 300
| float = centre
| float = centre
Line 10: Line 11:
| lon_deg = -76.974444
| lon_deg = -76.974444
}}
}}
|caption =
| caption =
|location = [[Bojayá]], [[Chocó Department|Chocó]]<br/>[[Colombia]]
| location = [[Bojayá]], [[Chocó Department|Chocó]]<br/>[[Colombia]]
|target = Civilians caught in the crossfire between the [[United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia|AUC paramilitaries]] and [[FARC|FARC guerrillas]]
| target = Civilians caught in the crossfire between the [[United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia|AUC paramilitaries]] and [[FARC|FARC guerrillas]]
|date = 2 May 2002
| date = 2 May 2002
| coordinates = {{Coord|6.5211|-76.9726|region:CO_type:event|display=it}}
|time =
|timezone =
| time =
| timezone =
|type = [[Massacre]]
| type = [[Massacre]], [[war crime]]
|fatalities = 119 civilians (including 45 children)<ref name="centrodememoriahistorica">{{cite web|url= https://www.centrodememoriahistorica.gov.co/descargas/informes2010/informe_bojaya.pdf|title= Bojayá: La guerra sin límites|publisher= centrodememoriahistorica.gov.co|access-date= 7 May 2017|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20171021174336/http://www.centrodememoriahistorica.gov.co/descargas/informes2010/informe_bojaya.pdf|archive-date= 21 October 2017|url-status= dead}}</ref>
| fatalities = 119 civilians (including 45 children)<ref name="centrodememoriahistorica" />
|injuries = 98
| injuries = 98
|perps = {{flagicon image|Flag of the FARC-EP.svg}} [[Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia|FARC]]
| perps = {{flagicon image|Flag of the FARC-EP.svg}} [[Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia|FARC]]
|weapons = [[Improvised explosive device|IED]]
| weapons = [[Improvised explosive device|IED]]
}}
}}
{{Campaignbox Colombian conflict|state=collapsed}}
{{Campaignbox Colombian conflict|state=collapsed}}
The '''Bojayá massacre''' ({{lang-es|La Masacre de Bojayá}}) was a [[massacre]] that occurred on May 2, 2002 in the town of Bellavista, [[Bojayá]] Municipality, [[Chocó Department]], [[Colombia]]. [[Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia]] (FARC) [[Guerrilla movements in Colombia|guerrillas]] attacked the town in an attempt to take control of the [[Atrato River]] region from [[United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia]] (AUC) [[Right-wing paramilitarism in Colombia|paramilitaries]]. During the fighting, a cylinder bomb (known in Spanish as a ''pipeta'' or ''cilindro bomba'') launched by the FARC with a [[Mortar (weapon)|mortar]] at the AUC paramilitaries positioned by the walls of a church, went through the roof of the church instead, landing on the altar inside. Of the approximately 300 inhabitants of the town who had taken refuge in the church, 119 died in the explosion.<ref name="centrodememoriahistorica" />
The '''Bojayá massacre''' ({{lang-es|La Masacre de Bojayá}}) was a [[massacre]] that occurred on May 2, 2002, in the town of Bellavista, [[Bojayá]] Municipality, [[Chocó Department]], [[Colombia]]. [[Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia]] (FARC) [[Guerrilla movements in Colombia|guerrillas]] attacked the town in an attempt to take control of the [[Atrato River]] region from [[United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia]] (AUC) [[Right-wing paramilitarism in Colombia|paramilitaries]]. During the fighting, a [[Boiling liquid expanding vapor explosion|gas cylinder bomb]] (known in Spanish as a ''pipeta'' or ''cilindro bomba'') launched at the AUC paramilitaries positioned by the walls of a church from a FARC [[Mortar (weapon)|mortar]] went through the roof of the church instead, landing on the altar inside and detonating. 119 civilians died in the attack; approximately 300 inhabitants of the town had taken refuge in the church, and 79 died in the explosion.<ref name="centrodememoriahistorica">{{cite web|url= https://www.centrodememoriahistorica.gov.co/descargas/informes2010/informe_bojaya.pdf|title= Bojayá: La guerra sin límites|publisher= centrodememoriahistorica.gov.co|access-date= 7 May 2017|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20171021174336/http://www.centrodememoriahistorica.gov.co/descargas/informes2010/informe_bojaya.pdf|archive-date= 21 October 2017|url-status= dead}}</ref>


==Background==
==Background==
The Colombian government had described the area as subject to "the armed confrontation in the region between the guerrillas and the illegal self-defence forces is very violent due to the economic and strategic interests in play, including, among others: [[drug trafficking]], the inter-oceanic connection, the development of [[megaproject]]s like the Panamerican Highway, and the proximity of ports and hydroelectric stations. The region furthermore represents advantages for these groups as a route for the import of arms and supplies from Central America and to provide favourable routes for drug trafficking." <ref name="DHreport">{{cite book | last= Ministerio de Defensa Nacional | title= Informe Anual Derechos Humanos y DIH 2000 |publisher= República de Colombia, Ministerio de Defensa Nacional |pages= 132, 133 }}</ref>
A 2001 publication prepared by the Colombian Ministry of National Defence, ''"Annual Report on Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law, 2000",'' provided the following description of the situation in Bojayá:<blockquote>"The armed confrontation in the region between the guerrillas and the illegal self-defence forces is very violent due to the economic and strategic interests in play, including, among others: [[drug trafficking]], the inter-oceanic connection, the development of [[megaproject]]s like the [[Pan-American Highway|Panamerican Highway]], and the proximity of ports and hydroelectric stations. The region furthermore represents advantages for these groups as a route for the import of arms and supplies from Central America and to provide favourable routes for drug trafficking."<ref name="DHreport">{{cite book | last= Ministerio de Defensa Nacional | title= Informe Anual Derechos Humanos y DIH 2000 |publisher= República de Colombia, Ministerio de Defensa Nacional |pages= 132, 133 }}</ref></blockquote>


==Preceding events==
==Preceding events==
At least 250 paramilitary combatants moved in to Bellavista, the administrative centre of the municipality of Bojayá, on 21 April 2002. They remained there despite protests by local residents. The UNHCHR sent an official communication to the Colombian government on April 23 expressing their concern regarding the presence of the paramilitaries and the possible consequences for the local people. The [[Ombudsman's Office of Colombia]] also visited the region on April 26 and released an early warning regarding the threat of an armed confrontation in the area.<ref name="UNreport">{{cite book | last= UNHCHR | title= Informe de la Oficina en Colombia del Alto Comisionado de las Naciones Unidas para los Derechos Humanos sobre su Misión de Observación en el Medio Atrato |date=20 May 2002|url= http://www.hchr.org.co/documentoseinformes/informes/tematicos/bojaya.pdf |publisher= Oficina en Colombia del Alto Comisionado de las Naciones Unidas para los Derechos Humanos }}</ref>
At least 250 paramilitary combatants moved in to Bellavista, the administrative centre of the municipality of Bojayá, on 21 April 2002. They remained there despite protests by local residents. The UNHCHR sent an official communication to the Colombian government on April 23 expressing their concern regarding the presence of the paramilitaries and the possible consequences for the local people. The [[Ombudsman's Office of Colombia]] also visited the region on April 26 and released an early warning regarding the threat of an armed confrontation in the area.<ref name="UNreport">{{cite book | last= UNHCHR | title= Informe de la Oficina en Colombia del Alto Comisionado de las Naciones Unidas para los Derechos Humanos sobre su Misión de Observación en el Medio Atrato | date= 20 May 2002 | url= http://www.hchr.org.co/documentoseinformes/informes/tematicos/bojaya.pdf | publisher= Oficina en Colombia del Alto Comisionado de las Naciones Unidas para los Derechos Humanos | access-date= 10 June 2009 | archive-date= 3 August 2018 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180803173600/http://www.hchr.org.co/documentoseinformes/informes/tematicos/bojaya.pdf | url-status= dead }}</ref>


Intense fighting broke out on May 1 in neighboring town [[Vigía del Fuerte]] and spread to Bellavista later in the day. Around 300 residents took shelter in the local church, 100 in the adjoining parsonage, and another 100 in the Augustinian Missionary residence, over the course of the night.<ref name="centrodememoriahistorica" /><ref name="UNreport" />
Intense fighting broke out on May 1 in a neighboring town, [[Vigía del Fuerte]], and spread to Bellavista later in the day. Around 300 residents took shelter in the local church, 100 in the adjoining parsonage, and another 100 in the Augustinian Missionary residence, over the course of the night.<ref name="centrodememoriahistorica" /><ref name="UNreport" />


==Details of the attack==
==Details of the attack==
According to the official UN investigation report, in the morning of May 2 the AUC paramilitaries had established positions around the church, using the rare concrete buildings and the cement wall around the church yard for protection. The FARC took up positions to the north (in Barrio Pueblo Nuevo), and began launching gas cylinder bombs (''pipetas'') toward the paramilitary positions. The [[Provisional Irish Republican Army]] had recently transferred this home-made mortar technology to FARC<ref>{{cite news
According to the official UN investigation report, in the morning of May 2 the AUC paramilitaries had established positions around the church, using the rare concrete buildings and the cement wall around the church yard for protection. The FARC took up positions to the north (in Barrio Pueblo Nuevo), and began launching gas cylinder bombs (''pipetas'') toward the paramilitary positions. Two of the bombs landed nearby and the third went through the roof of the church, where it exploded on the altar.<ref name="centrodememoriahistorica" />
|url=https://www.irishtimes.com/news/ira-technology-in-mortar-attack-colombia-1.432828/
|title=IRA technology in mortar attack - Colombia
|date=Aug 12, 2002
|publisher=Irish Times
|access-date=2021-04-30}}</ref><ref>{{cite news
|url=https://www.irishtimes.com/news/colombia-rebels-used-ira-technology-says-ex-farc-leader-1.1145343/
|title=Colombia rebels used IRA technology, says ex-FARC leader
|date=Jun 18, 2004
|publisher=Irish Times
|access-date=2021-04-30}}</ref><ref>{{cite web
|url=https://www.michaelmcdowell.ie/time-to-wake-up-and-smell-the-coffee-over-sinn-f%C3%A9in.html/
|title=Time to wake up and smell the coffee over Sinn Féin
|date=Dec 2, 2020
|website=www.michaelmcdowell.ie
|publisher=Michael McDowell
|access-date=2021-04-30}}</ref>. Two of the bombs landed nearby and the third went through the roof of the church, where it exploded on the altar.<ref name="centrodememoriahistorica" />
[[File:Bellavista Viejo - Church interior.jpg|thumb|304x304px|The church as of 2020, after reconstruction.]]The explosion resulted in approximately 119 dead and 98 wounded, though the UN was not able to verify exact numbers. A large number of the dead and wounded were children.<ref name=UNreport/>


The UN investigation found the FARC in violation of several principles of international humanitarian law, including an indiscriminate attack causing unnecessary civilian casualties, failure to distinguish between civilian and combatant, failure to take efforts to protect civilians from avoidable harm, and attacks against cultural property. Prohibitions against these acts are found in Common Article 3 of the [[Fourth Geneva Convention|1949 Geneva Conventions]] and Articles 4, 13, and 16 of Additional Protocol II. The UN also considered the FARC responsible for the forced displacement of civilians generated as a consequence of the attack on the church, placing the act in violation of Article 17 of Protocol II.<ref name=UNreport/>
The UN investigation found the FARC in violation of several principles of international humanitarian law, including an [[indiscriminate attack]] causing unnecessary civilian casualties, failure to distinguish between civilian and combatant, failure to take efforts to protect civilians from avoidable harm, and attacks against cultural property. Prohibitions against these acts are found in Common Article 3 of the [[Fourth Geneva Convention|1949 Geneva Conventions]] and Articles 4, 13, and 16 of Additional Protocol II. The UN also considered the FARC responsible for the forced displacement of civilians generated as a consequence of the attack on the church, placing the act in violation of Article 17 of Protocol II.<ref name=UNreport/>


The UN also found the AUC in violation of various aspects of international humanitarian law, including using civilians as human shields, failing to protect civilians from the effects of their military operations, and for causing massive forced displacement of civilian populations in the region due to their acts, threats and combat operations in the area. Given reports of theft by the AUC of goods, equipment and vehicles belonging to local residents, the UN also found the AUC guilty of pillage (a violation of Article 17 of Protocol II).<ref name=UNreport/>
The UN found the AUC to be in violation of various aspects of international humanitarian law, including using civilians as human shields, failing to protect civilians from the effects of their military operations, and for causing massive forced displacement of civilian populations in the region due to their acts, threats and combat operations in the area. Given reports of theft by the AUC of goods, equipment and vehicles belonging to local residents, the UN also found the AUC guilty of pillage (a violation of Article 17 of Protocol II).<ref name=UNreport/>


The UNHCHR also found that the Colombian government failed to act in order to prevent the massive human suffering resulting from the events in Bojaya: suffering that was predicted and of which the government was explicitly warned beforehand.<ref name=UNreport/>[[File:Casa de la Hermanas Agustinas.jpg|thumb|303x303px|The residence of the Augustinian Nuns as of 2020, where around 100 people took refuge during the fighting in 2020,<ref name="centrodememoriahistorica" /> now abandoned.]]
The UNHCHR additionally found that the Colombian government failed to act, in order to prevent the massive human suffering which ensued from the events in Bojaya; suffering that was predicted and of which the government was explicitly warned of beforehand.<ref name=UNreport/>[[File:Casa de la Hermanas Agustinas.jpg|thumb|303x303px|The residence of the Augustinian Nuns as of 2020, where around 100 people took refuge during the fighting in 2020,<ref name="centrodememoriahistorica" /> now abandoned.]]

⚫
==Responsibility of the state==
== ''Bellavista Nuevo'' ==
The attack caused significant physical damage to Bellavista. In its aftermath, some 4,000 citizens fled Bojayá, including all residents of Bellavista.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Semple |first=Kirk |date=2016-10-10 |title=With Colombia’s Peace Deal in Doubt, a Battered Town Fears a Return to War |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/11/world/americas/colombia-peace-deal.html |access-date=2024-02-11 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Five days after the attack the Colombian government announced that a new town would be constructed. Support from the residents of Bellavista for this decision was largely favourable, though not unanimous. [[Site selection|Siting]] and [[Urban planning|planning]] was undertaken by graduate students at [[Pontificia Universidad Javeriana|Universidad Javeriana]] in [[Bogotá]], who selected a location roughly one kilometre from the old town for its low risk of flooding.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Tiempo |first=Casa Editorial El |date=2004-05-01 |title=EN MARCHA REUBICACIÓN DE BELLAVISTA |url=https://www.eltiempo.com/archivo/documento/MAM-1525966 |access-date=2024-02-11 |website=El Tiempo |language=spanish}}</ref>

The buildings of the new settlement were well-constructed, and connected to a network of municipal utilities and services. The original town of Bellavista was abandoned, and is now referred to as ''Bellavista Viejo'' ("Old Bellavista"). The new settlement took the name ''Bellavista Nuevo''.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Tiempo |first=Casa Editorial El |date=2017-11-22 |title=De la devastación a la esperanza: así se levanta Bojayá |url=https://www.eltiempo.com/colombia/otras-ciudades/cristo-mutilado-de-bojaya-dio-esperanzas-de-paz-al-pueblo-colombiano-154128 |access-date=2024-02-11 |website=El Tiempo |language=spanish}}</ref>

⚫
== Responsibility of the state ==
The First Administrative Court of [[Quibdó|Quibdo]], Chocó sentenced the Colombian State to a billion and a half Colombian peso compensation to relatives of two of the dead victims on May 29, 2008. It ruled the State was administratively responsible and had neglected to protect its citizens, despite the warnings of the ombudsman.<ref>{{cite news
The First Administrative Court of [[Quibdó|Quibdo]], Chocó sentenced the Colombian State to a billion and a half Colombian peso compensation to relatives of two of the dead victims on May 29, 2008. It ruled the State was administratively responsible and had neglected to protect its citizens, despite the warnings of the ombudsman.<ref>{{cite news
|url=http://colombiareports.com/2008/05/29/colombian-state-sentenced-to-pay-compensation-to-bojaya-victims/
|url=http://colombiareports.com/2008/05/29/colombian-state-sentenced-to-pay-compensation-to-bojaya-victims/
Line 67: Line 58:


==Death of perpetrator==
==Death of perpetrator==
At dawn of 22 February 2012, nearly 10 years after the event, a [[Colombian Air Force]] [[Embraer Super Tucano|EMB-314]] aircraft identified the camp of FARC's 57th Front, 15 kilometers north of Bojayá near the border with Panama. The Super Tucano dropped two high-precision bombs, destroying the camp and killing six FARC rebels, including Pedro Alfonso Alvarado alias "Mapanao", who are believed to have been responsible for the massacre.<ref>[https://archive.today/20130118174804/http://www.canalrcnmsn.com/noticias/as%C3%AD_fue_atacado_por_la_fuerza_a%C3%A9rea_campamento_de_las_farc_en_choc%C3%B3 "Así fue atacado por la Fuerza Aérea campamento de las Farc en Chocó" (in Spanish).] ''Canal RCN, '' 23 February 2012. Retrieved 23 February 2012</ref><ref>[http://www.elpais.com.co/elpais/judicial/noticias/santos-anuncia-muerte-responsable-masacre-bojaya "Cayó alias ‘mapanao’, autor de la masacre de Bojayá" (in Spanish).] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160115233557/http://www.elpais.com.co/elpais/judicial/noticias/santos-anuncia-muerte-responsable-masacre-bojaya |date=2016-01-15 }} ''El País, '' 22 February 2012. Retrieved 23 February 2012.</ref>
At dawn of 22 February 2012, nearly 10 years after the event, a [[Colombian Air Force]] [[Embraer Super Tucano|Embraer EMB 314 Super Tucano]] identified the camp of FARC's 57th Front, 15 kilometers north of Bojayá near the border with Panama. The Super Tucano dropped two high-precision bombs, destroying the camp and killing six FARC rebels (including Pedro Alfonso Alvarado a.k.a. “Mapanao"), who are believed to have been responsible for the massacre.<ref>[https://archive.today/20130118174804/http://www.canalrcnmsn.com/noticias/as%C3%AD_fue_atacado_por_la_fuerza_a%C3%A9rea_campamento_de_las_farc_en_choc%C3%B3 "Así fue atacado por la Fuerza Aérea campamento de las Farc en Chocó" (in Spanish).] ''Canal RCN, '' 23 February 2012. Retrieved 23 February 2012</ref><ref>[http://www.elpais.com.co/elpais/judicial/noticias/santos-anuncia-muerte-responsable-masacre-bojaya "Cayó alias ‘mapanao’, autor de la masacre de Bojayá" (in Spanish).] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160115233557/http://www.elpais.com.co/elpais/judicial/noticias/santos-anuncia-muerte-responsable-masacre-bojaya |date=2016-01-15 }} ''El País, '' 22 February 2012. Retrieved 23 February 2012.</ref>


==See also==
==See also==
Line 74: Line 65:
==Notes==
==Notes==
{{Reflist}}<br />{{Colombia_conflict|state=collapsed}}
{{Reflist}}<br />{{Colombia_conflict|state=collapsed}}
{{coord missing|Colombia}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Bojaya massacre}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bojaya massacre}}
[[Category:Conflicts in 2002]]
[[Category:2002 mass shootings]]
[[Category:Massacres in Colombia]]
[[Category:21st-century mass murder in Colombia]]
[[Category:Spree shootings in Colombia]]
[[Category:Spree shootings in Colombia]]
[[Category:Mass murder in 2002]]
[[Category:Improvised explosive device bombings in 2002]]
[[Category:Political repression in Colombia]]
[[Category:Political repression in Colombia]]
[[Category:Massacres committed by FARC]]
[[Category:Massacres committed by FARC]]
[[Category:2002 crimes in Colombia]]
[[Category:Massacres of the Colombian conflict]]
⚫
[[Category:Colombian conflict]]
[[Category:May 2002 events in South America]]
[[Category:May 2002 events in South America]]
[[Category:2002 murders in South America]]
[[Category:2002 murders in Colombia]]
[[Category:2000s murders in Colombia]]
[[Category:Massacres in 2002]]
[[Category:2002 building bombings]]
[[Category:Church bombings]]
[[Category:Attacks on churches in South America]]
[[Category:Building bombings in Colombia]]
[[Category:Gas explosions]]
[[Category:Terrorist incidents in Colombia in the 2000s]]
[[Category:Terrorist incidents involving incendiary devices]]
[[Category:Chocó Department]]
[[Category:Terrorist incidents in South America in 2002]]

Latest revision as of 18:51, 22 May 2024

Bojayá massacre
Part of the Colombian conflict
Bojayá massacre is located in Colombia
Bojayá
Bojayá
Bojayá massacre (Colombia)
LocationBojayá, Chocó
Colombia
Coordinates6°31′16″N 76°58′21″W / 6.5211°N 76.9726°W / 6.5211; -76.9726
Date2 May 2002
TargetCivilians caught in the crossfire between the AUC paramilitaries and FARC guerrillas
Attack type
Massacre, war crime
WeaponsIED
Deaths119 civilians (including 45 children)[1]
Injured98
Perpetrators FARC

The Bojayá massacre (Spanish: La Masacre de Bojayá) was a massacre that occurred on May 2, 2002, in the town of Bellavista, Bojayá Municipality, Chocó Department, Colombia. Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) guerrillas attacked the town in an attempt to take control of the Atrato River region from United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC) paramilitaries. During the fighting, a gas cylinder bomb (known in Spanish as a pipeta or cilindro bomba) launched at the AUC paramilitaries positioned by the walls of a church from a FARC mortar went through the roof of the church instead, landing on the altar inside and detonating. 119 civilians died in the attack; approximately 300 inhabitants of the town had taken refuge in the church, and 79 died in the explosion.[1]

Background

[edit]

A 2001 publication prepared by the Colombian Ministry of National Defence, "Annual Report on Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law, 2000", provided the following description of the situation in Bojayá:

"The armed confrontation in the region between the guerrillas and the illegal self-defence forces is very violent due to the economic and strategic interests in play, including, among others: drug trafficking, the inter-oceanic connection, the development of megaprojects like the Panamerican Highway, and the proximity of ports and hydroelectric stations. The region furthermore represents advantages for these groups as a route for the import of arms and supplies from Central America and to provide favourable routes for drug trafficking."[2]

Preceding events

[edit]

At least 250 paramilitary combatants moved in to Bellavista, the administrative centre of the municipality of Bojayá, on 21 April 2002. They remained there despite protests by local residents. The UNHCHR sent an official communication to the Colombian government on April 23 expressing their concern regarding the presence of the paramilitaries and the possible consequences for the local people. The Ombudsman's Office of Colombia also visited the region on April 26 and released an early warning regarding the threat of an armed confrontation in the area.[3]

Intense fighting broke out on May 1 in a neighboring town, Vigía del Fuerte, and spread to Bellavista later in the day. Around 300 residents took shelter in the local church, 100 in the adjoining parsonage, and another 100 in the Augustinian Missionary residence, over the course of the night.[1][3]

Details of the attack

[edit]

According to the official UN investigation report, in the morning of May 2 the AUC paramilitaries had established positions around the church, using the rare concrete buildings and the cement wall around the church yard for protection. The FARC took up positions to the north (in Barrio Pueblo Nuevo), and began launching gas cylinder bombs (pipetas) toward the paramilitary positions. Two of the bombs landed nearby and the third went through the roof of the church, where it exploded on the altar.[1]

The UN investigation found the FARC in violation of several principles of international humanitarian law, including an indiscriminate attack causing unnecessary civilian casualties, failure to distinguish between civilian and combatant, failure to take efforts to protect civilians from avoidable harm, and attacks against cultural property. Prohibitions against these acts are found in Common Article 3 of the 1949 Geneva Conventions and Articles 4, 13, and 16 of Additional Protocol II. The UN also considered the FARC responsible for the forced displacement of civilians generated as a consequence of the attack on the church, placing the act in violation of Article 17 of Protocol II.[3]

The UN found the AUC to be in violation of various aspects of international humanitarian law, including using civilians as human shields, failing to protect civilians from the effects of their military operations, and for causing massive forced displacement of civilian populations in the region due to their acts, threats and combat operations in the area. Given reports of theft by the AUC of goods, equipment and vehicles belonging to local residents, the UN also found the AUC guilty of pillage (a violation of Article 17 of Protocol II).[3]

The UNHCHR additionally found that the Colombian government failed to act, in order to prevent the massive human suffering which ensued from the events in Bojaya; suffering that was predicted and of which the government was explicitly warned of beforehand.[3]

The residence of the Augustinian Nuns as of 2020, where around 100 people took refuge during the fighting in 2020,[1] now abandoned.

Bellavista Nuevo

[edit]

The attack caused significant physical damage to Bellavista. In its aftermath, some 4,000 citizens fled Bojayá, including all residents of Bellavista.[4] Five days after the attack the Colombian government announced that a new town would be constructed. Support from the residents of Bellavista for this decision was largely favourable, though not unanimous. Siting and planning was undertaken by graduate students at Universidad Javeriana in Bogotá, who selected a location roughly one kilometre from the old town for its low risk of flooding.[5]

The buildings of the new settlement were well-constructed, and connected to a network of municipal utilities and services. The original town of Bellavista was abandoned, and is now referred to as Bellavista Viejo ("Old Bellavista"). The new settlement took the name Bellavista Nuevo.[6]

Responsibility of the state

[edit]

The First Administrative Court of Quibdo, Chocó sentenced the Colombian State to a billion and a half Colombian peso compensation to relatives of two of the dead victims on May 29, 2008. It ruled the State was administratively responsible and had neglected to protect its citizens, despite the warnings of the ombudsman.[7]

Death of perpetrator

[edit]

At dawn of 22 February 2012, nearly 10 years after the event, a Colombian Air Force Embraer EMB 314 Super Tucano identified the camp of FARC's 57th Front, 15 kilometers north of Bojayá near the border with Panama. The Super Tucano dropped two high-precision bombs, destroying the camp and killing six FARC rebels (including Pedro Alfonso Alvarado a.k.a. “Mapanao"), who are believed to have been responsible for the massacre.[8][9]

See also

[edit]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e "Bojayá: La guerra sin límites" (PDF). centrodememoriahistorica.gov.co. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 October 2017. Retrieved 7 May 2017.
  2. ^ Ministerio de Defensa Nacional. Informe Anual Derechos Humanos y DIH 2000. República de Colombia, Ministerio de Defensa Nacional. pp. 132, 133.
  3. ^ a b c d e UNHCHR (20 May 2002). Informe de la Oficina en Colombia del Alto Comisionado de las Naciones Unidas para los Derechos Humanos sobre su Misión de Observación en el Medio Atrato (PDF). Oficina en Colombia del Alto Comisionado de las Naciones Unidas para los Derechos Humanos. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 August 2018. Retrieved 10 June 2009.
  4. ^ Semple, Kirk (2016-10-10). "With Colombia's Peace Deal in Doubt, a Battered Town Fears a Return to War". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2024-02-11.
  5. ^ Tiempo, Casa Editorial El (2004-05-01). "EN MARCHA REUBICACIÓN DE BELLAVISTA". El Tiempo (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-02-11.
  6. ^ Tiempo, Casa Editorial El (2017-11-22). "De la devastación a la esperanza: así se levanta Bojayá". El Tiempo (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-02-11.
  7. ^ "Colombian State sentenced to pay compensation to Bojayá victims". Colombia Reports. May 29, 2008. Retrieved 2008-05-29. [dead link]
  8. ^ "Así fue atacado por la Fuerza Aérea campamento de las Farc en Chocó" (in Spanish). Canal RCN, 23 February 2012. Retrieved 23 February 2012
  9. ^ "Cayó alias ‘mapanao’, autor de la masacre de Bojayá" (in Spanish). Archived 2016-01-15 at the Wayback Machine El País, 22 February 2012. Retrieved 23 February 2012.


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