To mark the start of this new relationship between parishes in England and Wales and this exciting peace project, we will be moving on with a new name, Hands On, to replace Connect2. Get Hands On with your parish and help young people in Colombia overcome years of conflict. With your support, they can become ‘Generation Peace”. cafod.org.uk/parishproject

Colombia Population: Almost 50 million Currency: Colombian peso Languages: Spanish and more than 65 native languages Religion: 70.9% Catholic, 14% Evangelical and Protestant Average age: 30 years (UK: 40 years) Poverty: 28% live on less than $2 a day. In some areas this is as high as 60%. Colombia sits on the equator and its territory includes Andean mountains, Amazon rainforest, tropical grassland and both Caribbean and Pacific coastlines. Its varied landscapes mean that Colombia is the second most biodiverse country in the world, lagging only after much larger Brazil.   Colombia is also one of the most diverse countries in the world in terms of language and ethnicity.

Armed conflict For more than 50 years, Colombia has suffered from an armed conflict between government forces, leftist guerrilla groups and right-wing paramilitaries. Illegal economies including gold-mining and drug-trafficking have also fuelled the conflict. Almost 280,000 people have been killed, 60,000 ‘disappeared’ since 1985. Almost eight million people have been forced to flee their homes because of the conflict.   Colombia is also one of the most dangerous places in the world to be a human rights defender – 137 defenders were killed last year. For more than 50 years, Colombia has suffered from an armed conflict between government forces, leftist guerrilla groups (FARC, ELN, etc.) and right-wing paramilitaries. Illegal economies including gold-mining and drug-trafficking have also fuelled the conflict. Colombia’s National Victims Unit has recorded almost 280,000 killings, more than 60,000 people forcibly disappeared and almost eight million people forced to flee their homes because of the conflict. Only crimes that have taken place since 1985 are listed, so these figures are likely to be much higher.   Colombia is also one of the most dangerous places in the world to be a human rights defender, with 137 community and social leaders/ defenders killed in 2017. Community leaders who are supporting peacebuilding efforts at local level are among those most targeted. What is a human rights defender? They are people who non-violently promote or protect the rights of others. These include political, economic, environmental and cultural rights. They are community leaders, lawyers, activists and journalists.

A fragile peace In 2016 the Colombian Government and the FARC guerrilla group signed an historic peace agreement. In 2017, peace talks started with another guerrilla group, the ELN and a temporary ceasefire was put in place before Pope Francis’ visit to Colombia. The peace is fragile and in some regions of Colombia, people are still being forced to flee their homes. “If Colombia wants a stable and lasting peace, it must urgently take a step in this direction, which is that of the common good, of equity, of justice, of respect for human nature and its demands.” Pope Francis After more than four years of talks, on 24 November 2016 the Colombian Government and the FARC guerrilla group signed an historic peace agreement. In 2017, peace talks started with another guerrilla group, the ELN and a temporary ceasefire was put in place before Pope Francis’ visit to Colombia. The peace is fragile and in some regions of Colombia, people are still being forced to flee their homes. Establishing a permanent peace for everyone will take time and the outcome of the 2018 elections will play a crucial role as well.

Magdalena Medio The Magdalena Medio region has long been an area targeted by armed groups. Many people in Magdalena Medio have experienced: loved ones being killed violence, including sexual violence fear and repression forced recruitment of someone in their family Teenagers and young people are at particular risk. The Magdalena Medio region has long been an area targeted by armed groups. Illegal goods are also often transported through this area. As a result of conflict in Colombia, many people in Magdalena Medio will have experienced: loved ones being killed violence, including sexual violence fear and repression forced recruitment of someone in their family Teenagers and young people are at particular risk from violence, involvement in drugs and trafficking and recruitment into criminal gangs or paramilitary groups.

Hands On aims to reach 4,956 people over three years by working with schools, local community groups and local authorities in an area about half the size of Wales. Two thirds of the people reached will be teenagers and young people. The project will work with teachers, students and parents at 34 secondary schools in Magdalena Medio. Working in schools gives an opportunity to reach significant numbers of people at once.

How your fundraising can help: £95 could pay the month’s salary of a regional expert, who can work locally with young people. £166 could pay for an annual parents and family workshop, held at a school, which equips the whole local community to live peacefully together. £550 could pay for three year’s worth of teaching materials for schools, youth groups and organisations in a local area.

Please also pray for the young people of Magdalena Medio

Make us builders of peace Father, you are an ocean of peace and you grant us this gift through your Son Jesus Christ and the action of the Holy Spirit. You sow it in our hearts through conversion and reconciliation. You entrust us with peace, making it our responsibility, converting us into builders of peace, so that we build it with “passion, patience, experience and determination”. You want our families to be schools for peace, where we listen to you, welcome you and follow you better, so that words and gestures of forgiveness germinate, along with listening, dialogue, tenderness, love and reconciliation, so that our children and young people may become protagonists of a peaceful future. Walk with us as we act upon our responsibilities in our social, political, economic, cultural and church lives. Help us to spread respect for life, people and creation; may we live in solidarity, may we be brotherly and sisterly, and just, and may we work for the common good. Welcome into your home those who have died in conflicts. Move the hearts of the perpetrators of violence, so that they return to you and may also be committed constructors of peace. Strengthen the dignity of the victims and give them the courage to offer forgiveness. Mary, Queen of Peace, help us to open our hearts, to live out justice, forgiveness, reconciliation and peace so that a civilisation of love may be born in our world today. Amen. A prayer from the Bishops’ Conference of Colombia

Sign up to Hands On as a parish Visit cafod.org.uk/parishproject If you are already a Connect2 parish, we will send you your Hands On welcome pack in January If you have any questions, ask your local CAFOD rep, or see our Q&As.