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20 July, 2005
A near-fatal death attempt in Colombia on the life of another trade union leader occurred 2 March. Rafael Cabarcas Cabarcas, a key leader of ICEM ally Unión Sindical Obrera de la Industria Del Petróleo (USO), was seriously injured when assassins riding a motorcycle opened fire on him and a bodyguard outside Funfedhin Institute of Education in Cartagena. A bullet entered the neck of Cabarcas and lodged in his jaw, while the bodyguard was shot in the abdomen. Cabarcas had been a member of the National Executive of USO during last spring’s successful strike against Ecopetrol, a strike in which ICEM spearheaded international support and attention. USO had warned the government of death threats against its leaders since the end of that strike and despite the fact that the Organisation of American States had recommended security tighter measures for USO leaders, none were put in place.