Barrancabermeja
|
|
| Contents |
History
Due to its strong industrial base, Barrancabermeja has a long history of labour activism and leftist organisations. The ELN began moving into Barranca in the late 70's and early 80's. The guerilla controlled areas of Barranca were essentially warzones. The military would only cross the bridge over the railroad into South east area of the city in armored personnel carriers. In time the guerillas became the status quo in many of the neighborhoods of the city. Until the late 1990s the city was a base for the ELN.
Then on May 16 1998 a large group of paramilitaries swept through the city killing seven people and kidnapping a further 25 who were later killed (Amnesty International, 1999). This massacre signaled the beginning of the AUC take over of the city. By 2001 they had taken over all of the city's neighborhoods.
Since 2001, human rights organizations have documented wide spread killings of activists and intimidation by paramilitaries. Those human rights groups that continue to operate have done so partly with support from Peace Brigades International who provide international volunteers who accompany human rights workers in their work (Center for International Policy Studies, 2001).
Because of its relative size and location on the Magdalena river, Barrancabermeja has also been the destination for many internally displaced refugees from the region.
Culture
Partly due to its history as an oil boom town, Barrancabermeja has a reputation as an open and vibrant city. On weekend nights, all the clubs in La Zona Rosa, the center of the city's night life, are filled with loud music and dancing until four in the morning, when clubs most legally close. The drink of choice is Aguila, a Colombian beer whose yellow logo is painted on walls and bill boards throughout the town.
The commercial area of the city is adjacent to the river ports, where motor canoes constantly arrive with fish and agricultural products from farmers along the river including maize, Cassava (or yuca in Spanish), plantain, and cacao.
Sources
- "Barrancabermeja: A City Under Siege" (http://web.amnesty.org/library/Index/ENGAMR230361999) - Report from Amnesty International on the 1998 massacre published in May 1999
- "The New Masters of Barranca" (http://www.ciponline.org/colombia/0401barr.htm) - An extensive report from Center for International Policy study on Barrancabermeja, Colombia based on a trip in March 6-8, 2001
External links
- Ecopetrol (http://www.ecopetrol.com.co) - the city's main petroleum company
- Vanguardia Liberal (http://www.vanguardia.com) - the city's main newspaper
- El Periódico (http://www.elperiodico.cjb.net/) - another city news source
- Corporación Regional para la Defensa de los Derechos Humanos (http://www.credhos.org/) - human rights organisation operating in Barrancajabermeja and the surrounding Magdalena Medio region
- Organización Femenina Popular (http://www.ofp.org.co/) - the main women's rights and development organisations in the cityde:Barrancabermeja
es:Barrancabermeja gl:Municipio de Barrancabermexa ( Santander do sur )