30 June 1997

Allegations that British Petroleum (BP) is involved in providing lethal training to the Colombian Police -- through the services of a British-owned private security firm -- are, if correct, a dangerous policy which could lead to serious human rights violations against the local community, Amnesty International said today.

"In the context of the current human rights crisis in Colombia -- in which the Colombian security forces have been responsible for widespread extrajudicial executions, torture and "disappearances" of civilians -- it would be extremely difficult to guarantee that any form of military, security and police training arranged by a private company to protect their own interests is not directly or indirectly contributing to further abuses against the local population," the human rights organization said.

In recent years members of the local community involved in legitimate protest against the impact of the oil companies, including BP, have frequently been labelled subversive and subsequently been victims of human rights violations by the security forces and their paramilitary allies.

The allegations against BP were brought to light by a World in Action television programme broadcast in the United Kingdom on 30 June, according to which BP has entered into a contract with Defence Systems Limited, a British private security company, to provide counter-insurgency training -- which reportedly includes lethal weapons handling, sniper fire and close-quarter combat -- to a Colombian police unit charged with protecting BP's staff and installations in the Casanare region of Colombia.

Foreign oil companies operating in Colombia have been frequent targets of attack by left-wing guerrilla organizations, particularly the estimated 6,000-strong National Liberation Army, ELN. Amnesty International takes no position on the right of companies to take legitimate measures to protect their employees and their installations. They should, however, take special care to avoid taking any action which might contribute to abuses against the civilian population.

In October 1996, in the light of growing human rights violations against members of the local community protesting against the impact of BP operations in Casanare, Amnesty International called on BP to review its operational policies to ensure that never again, however unwittingly, it would engage in practices which contribute to human rights violations.

In discussions with Amnesty International, BP expressed its commitment to ensuring that the activities of the company in Colombia do not lead to human rights violations; nevertheless, the human rights organization had not been informed by the oil company of their agreement to provide counter-insurgency training to the Colombian police.

"If BP have entered into a training agreement of the type described by World in Action there would be cause for concern given the lack of accountability generally enjoyed by private security companies in Colombia, the appalling human rights record of the Colombian security forces, the pattern of attacks against critics of BP's operations and the failure to bring to justice those responsible for abuses," Amnesty International said.