CALL TO THE ANNUAL CSN NATIONAL MEETING FOR 2018
The Board of Directors of the Colombia Support Network (CSN) invites all CSN members and interested persons to our annual CSN National Meeting, which will take place at Edgewood College in Madison on Friday and Saturday, June 8th and 9th, 2018.
This year in Colombia is especially important. The FARC guerrillas have delivered up to United Nations personnel their weapons and have begun their reintegration into Colombian society. While implementation of the Peace Agreement between the Colombian government and the FARC has encountered several problems, the basic structure for peace has been established. We will address both the positive developments in the peace process and the substantial difficulties encountered.
One of the most distressing concerns is the continued violence against leaders of civil society, including labor union leaders, members of local community action boards, and human rights workers. With Congressional elections earlier this month and the first round of the Presidential election coming up on May 27, we will consider what these political developments portend for Colombia.
Our CSN sister communities have called our attention to a high level of collaboration between paramilitary forces and Colombian Army and Police commands in their regions. We will discuss these threats and how we may best respond to help protect the sister communities. As usual, we will discuss the United States government’s policies toward Colombia and what we may do to improve this country’s approach toward Colombia.
We are celebrating the 30th anniversary of our CSN outreach to Colombian communities in areas of conflict. We hope you will join us as we discuss our plans for the future. Our specific schedule for the Annual Conference will be forthcoming shortly.
Sincerely,
Jack Laun
Co-Founder, CSN