Colombia: the Conservative Party of Colombia (Partido Conservador Colombiano, PCC), including mandate and platform; activities of the PCC in Santiago de Cali related to social programs funded or run by the PCC for former members of the guerrilla and the paramilitaries

1. Philosophy and Platform

The website of the PCC indicates that the political party was founded in 1848 following a speech by Julio Arboleda in the Chamber of Representatives (PCC n.d.a). An 1849 document titled Programa Conservador de 1849 outlined the ideology of the PCC, which was inspired by the classical philosophers Plato and Aristotle, Christian theologians such as St. Augustin, the ideals of 18th century French and American revolutions, and the political thought of Simón Bolívar, leader of the independence movement (ibid.). The party program, according to the party website, states that it is necessary to [translation] "preserve" the individual, human dignity, the family, private property, the law, justice, society, and the Republic (ibid.).

The party's website lists the PCC's main principles, including the following:

[translation]

Social stability requires strong legality and authority.

Private property is a natural right and a social function.

Equity and social justice reflect solidarity and Christian love.

Local autonomy and decentralization of power are important to the preservation of order and tradition. (ibid. n.d.b)

The website also indicates that the PCC is [translation] "a party that believes in God and seeks to strengthen its presence in society" (ibid.). The same source indicates that, for the 21st century, the PCC seeks to achieve the following:

to be the vanguard in matters related to peace, security, modernization, institutionalisation of the state, and the fight against poverty and ignorance;

to be an urban party involved in the employment, security and housing needs of the urban population;

to make peace the party's [translation] "main political purpose";

to protect, extend and consolidate the middle-class to achieve social justice;

to promote education and technology to make the workforce more competitive;

to be a party with "profound social content," seeking that each family have private property and that private property not be the privilege of a few;

to conceive the state as the "dispenser" of justice and not of "particular benefits" based on the practice of obtaining votes in exchange of government posts;

to comprehensively reform the state and revise the Constitution of 1991 as the latter "took away" the ability of the state to govern;

to defend national unity and promote decentralisation as a tool to improve the lives of citizens;

to continue its involvement in the political reform and the reconstruction of the judicial system to guarantee institutional stability;

to design a "humanistic economy with profound social commitment that privileges human capital, competitiveness, and social equality";

to "facilitate access to private property and savings to guarantee stability";

to demand that the current government continue the programs of former president Álvaro Uribe such as Families in Action, Youth in Action, and business opportunities for heads of households who are women;

to support programs related to housing, industrial growth, agriculture for the internally displaced;

to continue to support "democratic security" that is based on the principles of order, exercise of authority, and rule of law (ibid.).

The Political Handbook of the World 2013 defines the "democratic security" program as a "strategy of increased troop deployments, defense spending, and integration of the population in intelligence gathering against the insurgencies" initiated by former president Uribe in 2002 (2013, 294).

2. Political Activities in Cali

Sources indicate that, in the parliamentary elections in March 2014, PCC candidates in Valle del Cauca obtained one seat in the Senate (Javier Mauricio Delgado) and two seats in the Chamber of Representatives (Álvaro López Gil and Heriberto Sanabria Astudillo) (Diario ADN 10 Mar. 2014; El País 9 Mar. 2014).

Sources indicate that Rodrigo Guerrero was elected mayor of Cali in 2011, to serve from 2012 to 2015 (El País 4 Nov. 2011; Dinero 31 Oct. 2011). Guerrero ran as an independent in the elections of 2011 because his name was not registered on the PCC's list of candidates before the deadline set by the government (Caracol 30 Oct. 2011; La Silla Vacía 27 Sept. 2011). Before running for mayor, Rodrigo Guerrero was a PCC member of the Cali city council, according to two Colombian media sources (ibid.; Semana 31 Aug. 2013). He was also the mayor of Cali between 1992 and 1994 (Caracol 30 Oct. 2011; La Silla Vacía 27 Sept. 2011). Sources indicate that Guerrero managed the VallenPaz program in the department of Valle del Cauca (Semana 30 Oct. 2011; Caracol 30 Oct. 2011). According to the VallenPaz website, it is a privately funded organization that supports local farmers in the regions most affected by the armed conflict in the southwest of Colombia (VallenPaz n.d.). Additional information about the political activities of the PCC in Cali could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

In a telephone interview with the Research Directorate, the Director of the PCC's departmental branch in Valle del Cauca indicated that departmental or municipal branches of the PCC do not have political or financial autonomy from party headquarters and that all activities are centralized (PCC 9 Apr. 2014). Further information could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

3. PCC-funded Social Programs for Former Members of Guerrilla and Paramilitary Groups in Cali

The Director of the PCC's departmental branch in Valle del Cauca explained that reintegration programs [for demobilized members of armed groups] are carried out by the national government through the Colombian Agency for Reintegration (Agencia Colombiana para la Reintegración, ACR) (ibid. 7 Apr. 2014). According to the website of the ACR, it is the government agency responsible for [translation] "coordinating, providing advice, and executing, with public and private entities, the road to reintegration of demobilized persons from outlawed armed groups" (Colombia n.d.). The Director of the PCC's departmental branch in Valle del Cauca also indicated that, although municipalities have reintegration programs, these are run in coordination with the national government (PCC 7 Apr. 2014). The Director further stated that the PCC provides political support for project-related bills that guarantee the reintegration of persons belonging to the guerrillas and paramilitary groups (ibid.). The Director indicated that [translation] "the PCC does not have resources to finance reintegration programs in the city of Cali or nationally" (ibid.).

In correspondence with the Research Directorate, a representative of the ACR in Valle del Cauca indicated that

[translation]

[t]he reintegration process led by the ACR is not financed by political parties ... and it is not wise to make agreements with or collaborate with political parties, unless we are clear about the objective of and can avoid misinterpretation of such agreements. (Colombia 8 Apr. 2014)

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

References

Caracol. 30 October 2011. "Rodrigo Guerrero, nuevo alcalde de Cali." [Accessed 9 Apr. 2014]

Colombia. 8 April 2014. Agencia Colombiana para la Reintegración (ACR). Correspondence from a representative of the ACR in Valle del Cauca to the Research Directorate.

_____. N.d. "Quiénes somos." Agencia Colombiana para la Reintegración (ACR). [Accessed 8 Apr. 2014]

Diario ADN. 10 March 2014. "Balance de las elecciones del domingo en el Valle." [Accessed 9 Apr. 2014]

Dinero. 31 October 2011. "Rodrigo Guerrero, alcalde de Cali 2012-2015." [Accessed 9 Apr. 2014]

El País. 9 March 2014. "Estos son los candidatos del Valle que estarán en el Congreso de la República." [Accessed 2 apr. 2014]

_____. 4 November 2011. Julio Sánchez. "Alcalde electo de Cali, Rodrigo Guerrero, se reunió con concejales." [Accessed 9 Apr. 2014]

Partido Conservador Colombiano (PCC). 9 April 2014. Telephone interview with the Director of the PCC in Valle del Cauca.

_____. 7 April 2014. Telephone interview with the Director of the PCC in Valle del Cauca.

_____. N.d.a. "Historia." [Accessed 2 Apr. 2014]

_____. N.d.b. "Pensamiento y doctrina." [Accessed 2 Apr. 2014]

The Political Handbook of the World 2013. 2013. "Colombia." Edited by Tom Lansford. Washington, DC: CQ Press, 2013.

Semana. 31 August 2013. "Un señor alcalde." [Accessed 2 Apr. 2014]

_____. 30 October 2011. "Un alcalde Guerrero." [Accessed 2 Apr. 2014]

La Silla Vacía. 27 September 2011. Dora Montero. "Rodrigo Guerrero." [Accessed 9 Apr. 2014]

VallenPaz. N.d. "¿Quiénes somos?" [Accessed 9 Apr. 2014]

Additional Sources Consulted

Oral sources: Representatives of the branches of the PCC in Bogotá and Cali could not provide information within the time constraints of this Response.

Representatives of Vallenpaz could not provide information for this Response.

Internet sites, including: Alcaldía de Santiago de Cali; Amnesty International; Diario Occidente; ecoi.net; El Tiempo; Factiva; Freedom House; United Nations - Integrated Regional Information Networks, Refworld; Reliefweb; United States - Agency for International Development, Department of State.