After ten months living in the National Park, just on Carrera Séptima in Bogotá, the Emberá leave the place to return to their territories in Alto Andágueda, in Risaralda and Chocó. In total, 280 families will be returning (approximately 702 people). According to the Victims Unit, 39 households will be temporarily relocated and 11 people will be integrated locally..
The process has been monitored by various district and national entities, among them the Secretariat of Government; the Ministry of Peace, Victims and Reconciliation; the Ministries of the Interior, Finance and Housing and the National Institute of Roads (Invías)In addition, a month ago, the Mayor’s Office of Bogotá installed a Unified Command Post (PMU) in the National Park to ensure the well-being of the community, especially children and adolescents.
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“We have been accompanying the community for a month and a half, 24 hours a day, but also trying to do something way to weigh up all those difficult things that boys and girls go through, all that violence”said Gustavo Quintero, Secretary of Government, from the PMU.
Embera indigenous people.
EFE
The violence Quintero refers to was identified by the Mayor’s Office and includes: 14 cases of alleged sexual abuse, 30 cases of minors exposed to psychoactive substances and 19 cases of handling dangerous elements.
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Despite the difficulties, the return of the Emberá families It represents a great step towards peace building and reparation for victims of the conflict. It is worth remembering that These families came to Bogotá fleeing the violence present in their territories.
“This is extraordinary news for the country. It has taken months and years of work to ensure that the Emberá people see that we have made an enormous effort to create decent living conditions that will allow them to return, relocate or integrate in Bogotá,” said Lilia Solano, director of the Victims Unit.
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In addition, families will receive financial support from the national government. “The Ministry of Finance, through the District Treasury, organized in record time an agreement with Banco Agrario, the only financial institution in Pueblo Rico, Risaralda, to deploy the operation that allows 163 people from the Emberá community to have financial support for their sustainability equivalent to 754,000 pesos per person,” said Ana María Cadena, Secretary of Finance.
The three phases of return
Embera indigenous people.
EFE
The return began on Friday. The Emberá families said goodbye to the National Park with a ritual. Now, the three phases proposed by the Victims Unit continue.
– First phase: The initial group that will undertake the trip is made up of 58 families, who will be relocated to various locations in the municipality of Pueblo Rico, Risaralda. A total of 12 families will go to the community of Chiifa; 19 to Dokabú; 3 to the town of Paparidó and 6 to Santa Marta.
– Second phase: A total of 146 families will arrive mainly in Cascajero, where 83 of them will settle, while others will be distributed in smaller towns such as Irakal, Pescadito, Río Colorado, Pasaguedá, Conondo and Alto Moindó, traditional towns of the Emberá community.
– Third phase: Finally, 58 more families will return to territories such as Oscordó, Las Torres and Arenales, thus completing the community’s return process.
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