These are excerpts of the 2006 annual report of the Colombian delegation (see full report in Spanish)

In Colombia, armed conflict has continued to have significant consequences in humanitarian terms. In 2006, the ICRC delegation in Colombia once again noted numerous violations of international humanitarian law, with an alarming number of disappearances, summary executions and victims of anti-personnel mines. Meanwhile, attacks against medical personnel continued, hindering the provision of basic care for those most in need, in conflict areas.

One year later, Colombia remains among the countries with the largest internally displaced population in the world. In 2006, death threats, violent clashes, the killing of family members, pressure to cooperate with different parties to the conflict and restrictions on the ability to meet basic needs continued, causing a constant flow of displaced civilians to different parts of the country – mainly from the departments of Nariño, Cauca, Antioquia and Chocó, and particularly affecting Afro-Colombians and indigenous people. Since 2005, the ICRC has registered a gradual increase in the number of displaced people to whom it provides assistance. The organization has been helping displaced people in Colombia for 10 years now, and this beneficiary population is expected to reach one million by the end of 2007.

Many displaced people, forced to abandon their homes, seek safety in areas surrounding cities, where they face social and economic marginalization. The majority will never be able to return to their places of origin. Women and children, who make up more than half the displaced population, are particularly vulnerable, and as such, need special attention.

As the guardian of the Geneva Conventions, the ICRC will continue to help and protect the civilian population affected by armed conflict, and to teach the principles of humanitarian law to bearers of arms – whether to State forces or to organized armed groups – so as to improve protection for civilians not directly involved in the hostilities. In order to maintain access to the regions most affected by conflict and conduct its neutral and independent humanitarian activities, the ICRC will also continue to stay out of political and military disputes, while seeking to foster improved dialogue with the parties to the conflict.

Colombia will remain among the ICRC’s main operations in the world. The ICRC delegation there will do its utmost to meet the immediate needs of displaced people, help improve the conditions of persons deprived of their freedom, facilitate the freeing of hostages, guide mine victims to State services, help build minor infrastructure, and raise awareness of the humanitarian principles of the Red Cross.

To address the growing needs of the victims of the conflict, the ICRC has increased its budget for Colombia by 15 per cent in 2007 as compared with 2006. Its delegation in Colombia will continue to voice its humanitarian concerns through ongoing dialogue with the State, civil society and organized armed groups, in order to promote the implementation of humanitarian law and alleviate the suffering that the country's population has endured for so many years.
Victims, the focus of our action

Thousands of Colombians face the severe humanitarian consequences of armed conflict in their day-to-day lives. Millions of Colombians flee in fear of their lives, frightened of being caught in the crossfire and intimidated by the threats they receive, leaving almost everything behind. Others endure the ordeal of waiting months and even years for news of a family member. Thousands of women suffer different forms of abuse, mostly in silence, with sexual violence high on the list. People who have lost a limb or limbs to a landmine now face a long and painful process of rehabilitation to become reintegrated in a society, which, on occasions, is loath to accept them. Children, especially in rural areas, are recruited by armed groups or are forced into this way of life by the lack of education and/or social development opportunities. In spite of their age, children are drawn into the complex world of armed conflict.

Other victims include those living in remote areas seriously affected by the armed conflict, who do not have access to primary health care. To add to this bleak picture, medical personnel are often threatened, attacked or prosecuted for doing their job.

The tragedy of people taken hostage and their families has been dragging on for years, with no end to the anxious waiting in sight.

The difficult situation faced by the civilian population in areas affected by the armed conflict in Colombia continues. Although conditions improved in some areas of the country in 2006, in others they did not. In some parts of Nariño, Arauca, Cauca, Antioquia, Meta and Chocó, the humanitarian situation showed no sign of improvement.

With a view to providing an effective and timely response to assist victims of the armed conflict, as part of its humanitarian mission, in 2006, the ICRC implemented various programmes and projects, which sought to meet the most pressing needs of people affected by the armed conflict.