A/HRC/43/51/Add.1 D. Specific groups of human rights defenders who are at risk 1. Human rights defenders in rural areas: social, community and ethnic leaders, especially those promoting the peace agreements 32. The human rights defenders most at risk in the post-Agreement era are social and community leaders, including those with positions in the community action councils, ethnic leaders and, above all, the promoters of policies deriving from the Peace Agreement, especially the Comprehensive National Programme for the Substitution of Illicit Crops and agrarian reform, and land restitution claimants. According to a study by the Colombian Commission of Jurists, in the period between the signature of the Peace Agreement and the end of July 2018, 23 per cent of all murdered human rights defenders were members of the community action councils (including four leaders of African descent), 20 per cent were community leaders, 20 per cent were ethnic leaders (12 per cent indigenous and 9 per cent of African descent), 5 per cent were defenders of victims’ rights, 11 per cent were campesino leaders, 2 per cent were land restitution claimants and 2 per cent were human rights lawyers.56 33. The vast majority of these human rights defenders in rural areas not only serve on their community councils, as president or in other positions, but also belong to various local and national organizations and movements. Since the signing of the Peace Agreement, Marcha Patriótica and the National Coordinator of Coca, Poppy and Marijuana Growers have reported the highest number of murdered members. The members of ethnic social movements, in particular Communities Building Peace in the Territories and the Regional Indigenous Council of Cauca, received the highest number of threats. 57 34. The context in which human rights defenders carry out their work is extremely complex. Their human rights agenda puts them at risk, particularly in territories where the State is completely absent and communities are not effectively protected by the public law enforcement bodies with a presence there. The Special Rapporteur heard testimonies of how they are forced to interact with the various illegal and criminal armed groups and how they are targeted if they take a stand against their presence, forced recruitment, extortion or the sexual exploitation of their daughters or promote the Peace Agreement and, in particular, rural reform or the illicit crop substitution programme. 58 35. These human rights defenders in rural areas demand from the State the right to enjoy economic, social and cultural rights without discrimination. Their demands include access to safe drinking water, primary education and basic health care, all of which are essential minimum requirements that the State has an immediate obligation to fulfil. They also demand access to electricity and roads, which is fundamental for them to be able to sell the alternatives to coca that are produced, and denounce the inaction and lack of protection afforded by the public security forces. When they advocate for the resumption of peace talks with the ELN they are undermined and even criminalized by the authorities and/or non-State actors. 2. Defenders of ethnic, land and environmental rights 36. Indigenous and Afro-Colombian defenders reported to the Special Rapporteur the particular risks they face. In addition to the challenges and violations described above, they face de facto racial discrimination with structural and historical causes and risks intrinsically related to the defence of the human rights of their peoples, their way of life and their lands. Ethnic and campesino leaders’ defence of land and environmental rights means that they oppose the interests and pressures of national and international companies that exploit the natural resources in their territories (such as monocultures and mega-projects) and the interests of illegal and mechanized mining and various armed actors. In this context, they are killed and attacked, and entire communities are harassed, intimidated and even displaced. The National Indigenous Organization of Colombia has reported the 56 57 58 10 Colombian Commission of Jurists, ¿Cuáles son los patrones? Asesinatos de líderes sociales en el post Acuerdo, October 2018, pp. 22–24. Ibid., p. 26. End of mission statement by the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, Michel Forst, visit to Colombia, 20 November–3 December 2018, p. 20. GE.19-22542