Children, men and women participated in the elaboration of mats, fans and canvas shoes, among other activities to advance in the reconciliation and forgiveness process, as peace-building agents.

With the third cultural and traditional practices meeting, the strengthening action was carried out within the framework of the implementation of the satisfaction measure that is being carried out with the Betoy indigenous people, within the comprehensive reparation plan.

"In the midst of preventive health measures for situations related to Notwithstanding the pandemic, the Victims Unit highlights the commitment and participation of the Betoy people in the actions we are developing to advance the comprehensive reparation plan", said the director of the Victims Unit in Norte de Santander and Arauca, Alicia María Rojas Pérez.

“We recently complied with the satisfaction measure in which the Velasqueros and Julieros communities of this indigenous population held the third meeting of cultural and traditional practices that aim to rescue and maintain their own, indigenous lifestyle, represented in their beliefs, training and customs to keep them present and current with the new generations”, he pointed out.

The official explained that the meetings held were framed in the development of recreational recreational activities. “They used materials to make mats, fans, quotes, in addition, they shot the target, practiced the marranito and did relay races, games typical of their culture that included opening and closing harmonization rituals and that allowed social integration where through coexistence they bet on forgiveness and reconciliation as a fundamental process for the construction of peace”, he explained.

Report and publication

Likewise, he specified that it is contemplated that within this action the systematization and memory of each of the meetings held, as agreed in the collective reparation plan, protocolized in November 2018, be included.

Likewise, it emerged that the Victims Unit will prepare and publish a primer related to the traditional and cultural practices of this indigenous community, based on the testimonies of the members of the group, through the question system (formulated by the Unit) answer (given by the community). Among other activities, an audiovisual record will be made with the requirements established in the methodological plan agreed between the parties.

So far this year, members of this group have developed meetings related to traditional medicine practices that have been held with the participation of ancestral authorities, sobanderos, midwives and herbalists, consolidating their roots and customs typical of their culture. These actions have made it possible to strengthen the recovery of the social network of one of the ethnic communities most affected by the armed conflict in the eastern part of the country, which at the time, disintegrated its culture with various victimizing events.

(End/CEG/AMA/LMY)