A lawyer and peasants who are suing BP's oil pipeline company have
received death threats from paramilitaries in Colombia. Please urgently
fax BP's pipeline company, Ocensa, and the governor of Antioquia,
expressing your concern. Use the proposed text below or write your own.
 
The lawyer, Marta Hinestroza, visited England in April 2002 to publicise
the case against BP. Many of your will have met her while she was here.
The trip has made her a more high profile target and we are extremely
concerned for her safety. She and her colleague, Carlos Sánchez, are
representing 200 peasant families whose land has been destroyed by BP's
oil line and who now live in abject poverty.
 
PROPOSED TEXT:

We are extremely concerned to hear that paramilitaries have made
death threats against peasants in Zaragoza municipality (Antioquia)
and their lawyer Marta Hinestroza  who has lodged civil suits against
the pipeline companies OLEODUCTO CENTRAL S.A "OCENSA" y  OLEODUCTO
COLOMBIA "ODC".   We urgently ask the civil and military authorities to
take measures to protect their lives.
 
Hemos tenido conocimiento de amenazas de muerte por parte de
paramilitares contra las vidas de campesinos del Municipio de Zaragoza
Antioquia y su apoderada MARTA HINESTROZA quien adelanta demandas
civiles contra las sociedades OLEODUCTO CENTRAL S.A "OCENSA" y OLEODUCTO
COLOMBIA "ODC", por los daños y perjuicios que  fueron ocasionados con
la construcciòn de tales oleoductos, por lo que solicitamos
enèrgicamente que las autoridades civiles y militares les brinden las
medidas de seguridad pertinentes para la protecciòn de sus vidas.

Ocensa general manager, Bogota:
 
MANUEL CASTRO BLANCO  
Ocensa
Calle 78 No 11-17 Bogotà.
Colombia
Tel:  (571) 3250345
Fax: (571)2174815
E-mail:  m_castro@ocensa.com.co.
 
 
Ocensa, local manager in Antioquia:
 
JUAN CARLOS GARCIA
Ocensa
Carretera Troncal frente al aeropuerto
Caucasia,
Antioquia.
tel. (57 4) 830 8902/ 8903
 
 
Governor of Antioquia
 
EUGENIO PRIETO SOTO
Gobernador de Antioquia (Encargado)
Gobernación de Antioquia
Calle 42 B  #52-106, piso 12,
Medellín, Colombia
Tel: 0057 4 381 1009  or  0057 4 381 1465
Fax: 00 57 4 381 0052 
E-mail:  rmartine@gobant.gov.co
 
Ambassador Colombian Embassy
VICTOR RICARDO
3 Hans Crescent
London SW1X OLN
Tel: 0207 589 9177
Fax: 0207 7581 1829
E-mail:  mail@colombianembassy.co.uk

Foreign Office Minister
DR. DENIS MACSHANE MP
Under-Secretary of State
The Foreign Office
Whitehall
London SW1
E-mail:  macshaned@parliament.uk