By: Censat Agua Viva - Friends of the Earth - Colombia On February 29 and March 1, 2008 took place the third National Assembly referendum on water which was an important support processes, organizations and individuals from various regions of the country who are committed to the protection of water and life.
Previously, with the idea of \u200b\u200bmaking the Assembly in a deliberative body broad and participatory national tour was promoted by the National Committee in Defence of Water and Life - CNDAV. The tour, done in about 25 major and medium cities in the country [1] allowed a referendum visible in new places and new sectors, which rose to the challenge of promoting the initiative within their social processes that water is a good public and access a fundamental right.
In this confluence of various sectors, women and men environmentalists also committed ourselves to defending the commons, we are aware of the scale of the proposal that we face today in Colombia, and therefore undertook a mission to raise awareness and support formation of the Territorial Committees, always with the idea that they converge peasants, indigenous, youth, Afro-Colombians, students, teachers, fishermen, workers, among others, tireless allies in the struggle for the construction of sustainable societies and justice through them pursue.
From north to south, from east to west, the share of these sectors was broad and allowed the spirit to realize that chasing tour: join forces around the referendum on water. But also note the importance of this constitutional tool to advance environmental conflict resolution for water, concrete and real, that the intensification of the prevailing model and facilitating the transnational corporations and national oligarchies in the air put the survival of traditional communities and all forms of life which they are associated.
Thus, after the previous effort by convening a large number of participants to the Assembly, the development of it, the national tour and the first stage of collecting signatures can be drawn from several considerations.
First, it sees great enthusiasm from those who are supporting and boosting the referendum, the proof is the number of support achieved for the first stage of harvest, which exceeded 248 000. Also, environmentalists and active in the proposal, we understand as a priority, and we deliver content and actually made through our processes of resistance and our struggles for sovereignty of the territory management.
On the other hand, it is imperative the need to work in policy formation processes to water and conflict, to strengthen this movement in the making and bolster a work beyond the immediacy of the needs of the referendum, a critical mass of informed and committed to mobilize in defense of environmental heritage.
However, it is also necessary to recognize the challenges we face and not only solve our passion and enthusiasm, challenges that require ethical commitments, policy and practical interior processes that are created at national level.
First of all, the unit needed to achieve projected goals, you must run and taken as a real commitment, overcoming the differences and difficulties in acting on the precepts of solidarity that characterized the proceso.Es need more environmentalists come together in unity that will make a referendum on water, a success, following the steps in the fight over water in Bolivia, Uruguay and Paraguay, among many other places on the planet.
[1] Manizales, Florence, Ibague, Neiva, Sincelejo, Yopal, Cucuta, Monteria, Medellín, Cali, Bucaramanga, Popayan, Riohacha, Santa Marta, Valledupar, Pereira, Ocaña, Barranquilla, Sogamoso, Cartagena, Bogota and Armenia, among others.
