No, unfortunately. I will go on if you like, this is a very important aspect. I will go through it slowly.
The hypothesis underlying the signing of the Canada-Colombia Free Trade Agreement is that, by promoting investment, it will contribute to Colombia's development and through that very fact then have a positive impact on the factors behind the armed conflict. The same hypothesis seeks to ensure a resolution to the conflict by hoping to improve security, attracting new capital, and consequently participating in a virtuous circle.
Unfortunately, because of the very nature of the economic realities inherent to the Colombian armed conflict, this hypothesis does not also translate into reality. Our report clearly illustrates the need to assess in a transparent and independent way the impact on human rights, in order to avoid serious human rights violations resulting from extractive investments. Specifically, investments in areas subject to forced displacements are problematic. We have observed this dynamic very closely in our case study of the Sur de Bolivar region in Magdalena Medio.
Between 1994 and 2007, 53,202 individuals were violently displaced from their lands in Sur de Bolivar and 380 people suffered a violent death for political reasons. Despite that, exploration concessions were or have been granted by multinational corporations for a number of mines in the Sur de Bolivar region...