A/HRC/43/51/Add.1 2018, the current Minister of Defence declared that mafias and organized criminal groups were behind public protests. 49 Such statements undermine human rights defenders and expose them to greater risks and violations. 28. The criminalization of human rights defenders further undermines their legitimacy. There have been at least 70 reported cases in which human rights defenders from the People’s Agrarian, Campesino and Ethnic Summit (33 of whom are members of the Congress of the Peoples) have been accused, prosecuted and detained on charges, among others, of belonging to illegal armed groups, such as the disbanded FARC and ELN groups, or of colluding with these groups in connection with their social leadership to promote peace and a negotiated solution to the conflict. 50 29. In the context of efforts to defend land and environmental rights, at least 202 defenders have been prosecuted since 2012. 51 By way of example, during the Special Rapporteur’s visit, eight leaders from San Luis de Palenque were arrested and accused of collusion to commit an offence, violence against a public servant and obstructing a public road, and two of them with attempted homicide in connection with their participation in and leadership of the social protests between 2016 and 2018 in response to the failure of Canadian public company Frontera Energy to fulfil its obligation to compensate communities affected by environmental damage and to repair damaged roads. These human rights defenders remain deprived of their liberty, three of them in prison and five on house arrest. 30. The Special Rapporteur is concerned at the apparent connection between Frontera Energy, the army’s 16th brigade and the Attorney General’s Support Office in this criminalization and the possible impact of the agreement between Ecopetrol S.A. and the Attorney General’s Office on the situation. In November 2018, Frontera Energy signed two agreements with the Ministry of Defence for a total of US$ 1,343,106 to secure army protection for its activities.52 On 4 December 2018, the army and the police accused the aforementioned leaders of being members of “Los Jinetes con Careta”, an illegal armed group whose existence has yet to be recognized by the competent authorities. 53 Furthermore, since 2015, Ecopetrol, the main Colombian hydrocarbon exploitation company, has signed five cooperation agreements with the Attorney General’s Office for a total of US$ 24,698,485 to strengthen the investigative and prosecutorial capacity of the Attorney General’s Support Office to deal – inter alia – with crimes of obstruction of public roads during social protests that affect the functioning of Ecopetrol and/or its associated companies, such as Frontera Energy. 54 31. Criminalization in the context of social protests also involves arbitrary arrests and the excessive use of force by the public security forces, as occurred during the education sector protests just days before the Special Rapporteur’s visit, and the indigenous “minga” (protest) of March and April 2019 in the south-western region of the country, in which there were at least 104 arrests and 12 people were prosecuted, according to the information received. In this context, the Special Rapporteur is concerned about bill No. 281 of 2018, which could contribute to the criminalization of social protests, and the apparent failure to implement the National Protocol on Social Protest adopted within the framework of the National Committee on Safeguards.55 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 GE.19-22542 https://verdadabierta.com/mindefensa-lideres-sociales-lios-faldas-subvenciones-narcos/. Information provided by the Committee of Solidarity with Political Prisoners and organizations of the People’s Agrarian, Campesino and Ethnic Summit. www.elespectador.com/colombia2020/pais/en-colombia-202-defensores-del-ambiente-han-sidojudicializados-informe-ante-la-cidh-articulo-883268. Agreement 18-014, available at: http://rutasdelconflicto.com/convenios-fuerza-justicia/node/72 and agreement 18-017, available at: http://rutasdelconflicto.com/convenios-fuerza-justicia/node/50. “El ejército y la policía presentaron a los ocho líderes sociales capturados en San Luis de Palenque”, video published on 4 December 2018, available at: www.youtube.com/ watch?v=6xsC_d5ISqY. “Petroleras y mineras financian a la fuerza pública y a la Fiscalía”, available at: http://rutasdelconflicto.com/convenios-fuerza-justicia/node/437. Ministry of the Interior, resolution No. 1190 of 3 August 2018. 9