Trade unionist Walberto Quintero Medina was murdered in the city of Valledupar, department of Cesar, on Monday 28 April, with the attack drawing widespread condemnation from across the trade union movement and progressive political parties. He was shot inside a public establishment while socialising with friends and died shortly afterwards in hospital.
40-year-old Walberto was vice-president of the CUT federation’s departmental committee in Cesar, as well as an executive committee member of the SINALTRAINAL union for food industry workers. The union has seen a significant number of members killed in the past 20 years, with the murders of three unionised Nestlé workers prompting a GMB motion in support of the union in 2018.
A CUT statement said that Walberto’s killing ‘adds to the long list of crimes against union leaders and human rights defenders in our country, perpetuating an unacceptable cycle of violence against those who dedicate their lives to defending labour and social rights’. It called on authorities to provide security guarantees for SINALTRAINAL and other threatened trade unionists.
SINALTRAINAL has recently received support from Unite and the GMB in its campaign for improved conditions at Nestlé’s plants in Colombia. The union accused Nestlé of ‘serious violations of labour and human rights’ amid forced dismissals, intimidation of union members and risks to workers’ health and safety. A joint letter from GMB and Unite Nestlé reps in Britain called on the company to ‘take immediate steps to guarantee safety in the workplace, to launch a transparent investigation into alleged labour rights violations and to reinstate all workers dismissed unfairly’.
Just five days before Walberto’s murder, JFC was invited to speak virtually at SINALTRAINAL’s national assembly in Valledupar and provide an update on the campaign support. Other speakers included representatives of the Labour Ministry, which discussed the progressive government’s proposals for a public consultation on its labour reform bill. Walberto’s union branch hosted the assembly, while he was among the delegates in attendance.
The latest act of violence against SINALTRAINAL also came four days after the union denounced threats against members of the Bugalagrande branch in the Valle del Cauca region in southwest Colombia. The Nestlé campaign is particularly focused on Bugalagrande, as the union alleges that the worst abuses have taken place at the company plant there.