Cartel Politics in Columbia

An Interview with Pedro Galindo

Pedro Galindo is a Colombian petroleum worker. He is General Secretary of the Federation of Petroleum Workers, which represents petroleum, petrochemical, chemical and energy workers. The union has 12,000 members.

The multinationals control all the natural, nonrenewable resources. When they find an oil or coal field, they are automatically owners of part of what they find. Multinational Monitor: What is the state of organized labor in the Colombian energy and chemical industries?
Pedro Galindo: At the moment, we are changing the structure of our organization to an industry-by-industry federation. There will be one syndicate for petroleum, another for petrochemicals and chemicals, and another for electrical workers.
In the long term, we plan to create one big structure. The union structure in Columbia is quite dispersed at the moment. Currently, although only 5 percent of workers are members of a union, there are 1,200 syndicates in Colombia. The labor law prohibits industrial syndicates, allowing syndicates to be organized only by company.
This creates problems. Sometimes, the same industrial operation has different contractors. For instance, there are 1,500 workers in the Shell company fields, but Shell has only 100 direct employees. The rest of the workers have different employers. Therefore, if there is any kind of dispute with Shell, only 100 workers can negotiate. If the rest want to negotiate, they must form separate unions for each separate employer.
Also, many companies simply change their name in each sector in which they operate. Exxon, for instance, has 10 different names- -one for petroleum, one to distribute the oil, one for a chemical product, one for the production of coal, one for investments. A different syndicate must be organized for each [subsidiary].
We are therefore working to make one big organization for workers. We hope that it won't take more than five years. We have already achieved this goal among electrical workers. Before, there were 40 syndicates; now, there is one umbrella organization, with 40 local syndicates....
The divisions among syndicates are one of the main reasons so few workers are organized. In the oil industry, for instance, there are 60,000 workers. But only 8,000 are affiliated with a union. We hope to have 25,000 affiliated in two years. We have prepared a step-by-step plan, but the oil multinationals have now united in one group and they have paid a lawyer to lobby the state to prevent workers from organizing.
MM: What are the main oil companies operating in Colombia?
Galinto: Shell, Gulf, British Petroleum, Chevron, PetroCanada, Amoco, Occidental Petroleum. There are 92 companies in all. But the largest are the "Seven Sisters" and one French and one Canadian company.
MM: What is the role of multinational corporations in the Colombian economy?
Galindo: The multinationals control all the natural, nonrenewable resources. When they get to Colombia and find an oil or coal field, they are automatically owners of part of what they find. One half belongs to the multinationals and Colombia has to pay the multinationals to exploit the other half, which the country has rights to. It costs $1 to produce a barrel of oil, but Colombia has to pay the multinationals $20 to get the oil in our own soil. That gives the multinationals huge economic power.
We have many resources--for instance, we have 14 percent of the world's coal reserves--but only the multinationals can exploit them.
MM: Why can't Colombia develop those resources itself?
Galindo: We don't have technology. It is our largest problem. The multinationals bring their technology, use it and then take it back. After 50 years, they give their old equipment to the state as a present. What can we do with that? It costs more to maintain than it produces.
MM: What is the relationship between the multinationals and the government?
Galindo: The Colombian government protects the multinationals' interests because of the companies' major role in the economy and the government's desperation to attract foreign investment. Govemment officials claim, "This is the best for Colombia, there is no other way." But the multinationals' control concentrates wealth and perpetrates violence on the population. The clear result is seen in society. Ninety thousand children under the age of five die of hunger every year. One of every four farm children suffers from malnourishment. There are 500,000 children working to help their families achieve subsistence level incomes.
There are many ways the government defends the multinationals' interests. The government can revoke a company syndicate's license. It prohibits some workers from striking: the petroleum workers are forbidden to strike and so are the coal miners because of a big strike in May 1990 [see "Exxon Crushes Colombian Strike," Multinational Monitor, May 1990].
MM: Why does the government support the multinationals?
Galindo: The government is controlled by a ruling elite of 450 people. These 450 people control the land, the financial markets, the government and the army of 300,000 soldiers. The 450 people who control the economy are quite linked to the multinationals, which need help in controlling Colombia's natural resources.
The multinationals support electoral candidates; presidential candidates have to maintain good relations with the multinationals if they hope to be elected.
The elite also benefit from aid from the developed countries. The aid is channelled through the elites to maintain the system which benefits the multinationals. The developed countries claim they are supporting a democratic country, but in fact that aid is helping to protect the multinationals.
MM: What are worker health and safety conditions like in Colombia?
Galindo: In the last three years, 232 syndicate leaders and activists have been assassinated. In the last two years, four leaders have been murdered from our federation. The majority of our leaders have received death threats. This happens not just in the union movement but in the whole popular movement. In the last three years, 1,200 activists have been assassinated. Many of these assassinations are carried out by private armies.
The state army is also involved in repression. The aid that is being sent to combat, the drug dealers is being used to bomb civilians. The area where our federation is head-quartered has been bombed with helicopters that were supplied to combat the drug dealers. These helicopters and planes which bomb villages bear the insignia of the United States of America.
MM: What is the role of the private armies? Who do they work for?
Galindo: In Colombia, it is legal to have private armies; they are said to be for self-defense. Because they are for self- defense, the state army gives them weapons. Therefore, it is very difficult to draw the line between the private and state armies.
Texas Petroleum Co. is the owner of one whole oil field. The largest private army is operating in that field and so is one of the central controls of the narco-traffickers. The 5,000 people that are in the private army were trained by ex-officials of the Israeli and British armies who were contracted by a vice minister in the government. The narco-traffickers gave them logistical help, and the government army gave the private army its weapons. And all that happens in a private field of Texaco.
MM: Does the government investigate and prosecute those involved in assassinations?
Galindo: No. The impunity in Colombia is virtually complete. We have only obtained proof in one case, for a friend of mine who was a petroleum worker. We could prove that a Navy official assassinated him. But the four witnesses who saw what happened have already been assassinated. Among them was a 14-year-old girl. The government moved the trial to the other side of the country. In order for us to go and see what is going on, we have to travel 40 hours by land. It is likely that the case will be abandoned.
MM: What are the working conditions in Colombia like?
Galindo: Ninety percent of the workers in Colombia earn only the minimum wage. That is $80 a month. But the family basket [the basic goods which a family needs] costs three salaries. One visit to the doctor costs three days of work. Worse, 50 percent of workers earn less than the minimum wage. Women's working conditions are especially bad. They wash clothes and do other domestic work for $1 a day. Among men who work in the informal economy, the situation is the same. Some buy sunglasses in a market and sell them on a corner, and they earn just one or two dollars a day. Therefore, many members of the family need to work, including children.
The peasant children begin working at the age of seven, without payment. The children that work recycling trash or making bricks for construction work for only their own food. The children in the coal mines--and there are many--are paid for the amount they mine. But they are paid only for the coal itself, not for sterile material. Coal miners, who normally die at the age of 40, say they would prefer to have daughters than sons, because boys will have to go to the mine at the age of 10; girls at least have the hope of marrying another miner.
But I am talking now only about the 500,000 children who do work outside the home. Most children--60 percent--have to do domestic work. In Colombia, it is normal that if children don't work outside the home, they have to take care of a small child at home. The children know how to run family affairs but they don't know how to count to ten. This, I think, is the worst violence that can be exercised against the people, because it destroys the children, who are our future.
MM: Do the mines owned by multinationals use child labor?
Galindo: No. Exxon has the largest coal mine. The children work in what are called small- and medium-sized mines. And the small and medium mines are under the control of the 450 who make up the ruling elite.
But there are serious problems with the Exxon mine. In the last four years, 32 workers have died there. We don't know the reason. The worker is normally working, suddenly he becomes paralyzed and in a few days he dies. This happens only in the Exxon mine.
MM: Does your union focus on worker safety issues?
Galindo: The petroleum movement, which is the oldest in the country--my syndicate was founded in 1922--was born fighting for living conditions, for occupational health conditions. It is one of our policies, the protection of the worker. We have achieved a few things in the areas of job stability, health, education and retirement funds. We place less emphasis on salary, because without those four things, it is not worth a salary. If you don't have a job, if you don't have health, if you don't have education and you don't have any future, what is it worth to have a salary?
MM: What sort of solutions do you envision for the problems you are describing? Do you support nationalization of the multinationals' operations?
Galindo: The policy of our federation is the nationalization of natural resources. We have a problem of technological dependence. We don't have technology. We need to develop it. But in order to do so, we need to be sovereign in our resources. We say that the resources will be the property of Colombia and that they will be developed according to the needs of Latin America and Colombia. Natural resource products will be exported only when the basic needs of the population are filled. That requires that the multinationals be controlled; in exchange for benefitting from our resources, they will have the obligation to provide us with technology. Then the people will be able to plan their own future. Now, the multi-nationals plan the "development" of the country for their own benefit.
MM: Are you optimistic about political changes that could bring about what you are asking for?
Galindo: Yes. Colombia is the best place in the world to live. Although we have the war, someday we will solve our problems. No bad thing lasts forever.
Each and every country has to undergo its own struggle. But we must work toward one goal: the poor countries cannot continue to be poor. Colombia cannot think that Colombia by itself will achieve that. We must find our common points. We are going to achieve something only if all of Latin America pulls together. The same is true in Africa, Asia and for the poor of North America. It is a world problem. The power which has been accumulated in a few hands represents a danger for humanity.

We have many resources - for instance, we have 14 percent of the world's coal reserves - but only the multinationals can exploit them.

The multinationals bring their technology, use it and then take it back. After 50 years, they give their old equipment to the state as a present. What can we do with that? It costs more to maintain than it produces.

In the last three years 232 syndicate leaders and activists have been assassinated. In the last two years, four leaders have been murdered from our federation.

Texas Petrolium Co. is the owner of the whole oil field. The largest private army is operating in that field and so is one of the central controls of the narcotraffickers.

Coal miners, who normally die at the age of 40, say they would prefer to have daughters than sons, because boys will have to go to the mine at the age of 10; girls at least have the hope of marrying another miner.

The policy of our federation in the nationalization of natural resources. We have a problem of technological dependence. We don't have technology. We need to develop it. But in order to do so, we need to be sovereign in our resources.

Table of Contents

The multinationals control all the natural, nonrenewable resources. When they find an oil or coal field, they are automatically owners of part of what they find.	Multinational Monitor: What is the state of organized labor in the Colombian energy and chemical industries? Pedro Galindo: At the moment, we are changing the structure of our organization to an industry-by-industry federation. There will be one syndicate for petroleum, another for petrochemicals and chemicals, and another for electrical workers. In the long term, we plan to create one big structure. The union structure in Columbia is quite dispersed at the moment. Currently, although only 5 percent of workers are members of a union, there are 1,200 syndicates in Colombia. The labor law prohibits industrial syndicates, allowing syndicates to be organized only by company. This creates problems. Sometimes, the same industrial operation has different contractors. For instance, there are 1,500 workers in the Shell company fields, but Shell has only 100 direct employees. The rest of the workers have different employers. Therefore, if there is any kind of dispute with Shell, only 100 workers can negotiate. If the rest want to negotiate, they must form separate unions for each separate employer. Also, many companies simply change their name in each sector in which they operate. Exxon, for instance, has 10 different names- -one for petroleum, one to distribute the oil, one for a chemical product, one for the production of coal, one for investments. A different syndicate must be organized for each [subsidiary]. We are therefore working to make one big organization for workers. We hope that it won't take more than five years. We have already achieved this goal among electrical workers. Before, there were 40 syndicates; now, there is one umbrella organization, with 40 local syndicates.... The divisions among syndicates are one of the main reasons so few workers are organized. In the oil industry, for instance, there are 60,000 workers. But only 8,000 are affiliated with a union. We hope to have 25,000 affiliated in two years. We have prepared a step-by-step plan, but the oil multinationals have now united in one group and they have paid a lawyer to lobby the state to prevent workers from organizing. MM: What are the main oil companies operating in Colombia? Galinto: Shell, Gulf, British Petroleum, Chevron, PetroCanada, Amoco, Occidental Petroleum. There are 92 companies in all. But the largest are the "Seven Sisters" and one French and one Canadian company. MM: What is the role of multinational corporations in the Colombian economy? Galindo: The multinationals control all the natural, nonrenewable resources. When they get to Colombia and find an oil or coal field, they are automatically owners of part of what they find. One half belongs to the multinationals and Colombia has to pay the multinationals to exploit the other half, which the country has rights to. It costs $1 to produce a barrel of oil, but Colombia has to pay the multinationals $20 to get the oil in our own soil. That gives the multinationals huge economic power. We have many resources--for instance, we have 14 percent of the world's coal reserves--but only the multinationals can exploit them. MM: Why can't Colombia develop those resources itself? Galindo: We don't have technology. It is our largest problem. The multinationals bring their technology, use it and then take it back. After 50 years, they give their old equipment to the state as a present. What can we do with that? It costs more to maintain than it produces. MM: What is the relationship between the multinationals and the government? Galindo: The Colombian government protects the multinationals' interests because of the companies' major role in the economy and the government's desperation to attract foreign investment. Govemment officials claim, "This is the best for Colombia, there is no other way." But the multinationals' control concentrates wealth and perpetrates violence on the population. The clear result is seen in society. Ninety thousand children under the age of five die of hunger every year. One of every four farm children suffers from malnourishment. There are 500,000 children working to help their families achieve subsistence level incomes. There are many ways the government defends the multinationals' interests. The government can revoke a company syndicate's license. It prohibits some workers from striking: the petroleum workers are forbidden to strike and so are the coal miners because of a big strike in May 1990 [see "Exxon Crushes Colombian Strike," Multinational Monitor, May 1990]. MM: Why does the government support the multinationals? Galindo: The government is controlled by a ruling elite of 450 people. These 450 people control the land, the financial markets, the government and the army of 300,000 soldiers. The 450 people who control the economy are quite linked to the multinationals, which need help in controlling Colombia's natural resources. The multinationals support electoral candidates; presidential candidates have to maintain good relations with the multinationals if they hope to be elected. The elite also benefit from aid from the developed countries. The aid is channelled through the elites to maintain the system which benefits the multinationals. The developed countries claim they are supporting a democratic country, but in fact that aid is helping to protect the multinationals. MM: What are worker health and safety conditions like in Colombia? Galindo: In the last three years, 232 syndicate leaders and activists have been assassinated. In the last two years, four leaders have been murdered from our federation. The majority of our leaders have received death threats. This happens not just in the union movement but in the whole popular movement. In the last three years, 1,200 activists have been assassinated. Many of these assassinations are carried out by private armies. The state army is also involved in repression. The aid that is being sent to combat, the drug dealers is being used to bomb civilians. The area where our federation is head-quartered has been bombed with helicopters that were supplied to combat the drug dealers. These helicopters and planes which bomb villages bear the insignia of the United States of America. MM: What is the role of the private armies? Who do they work for? Galindo: In Colombia, it is legal to have private armies; they are said to be for self-defense. Because they are for self- defense, the state army gives them weapons. Therefore, it is very difficult to draw the line between the private and state armies. Texas Petroleum Co. is the owner of one whole oil field. The largest private army is operating in that field and so is one of the central controls of the narco-traffickers. The 5,000 people that are in the private army were trained by ex-officials of the Israeli and British armies who were contracted by a vice minister in the government. The narco-traffickers gave them logistical help, and the government army gave the private army its weapons. And all that happens in a private field of Texaco. MM: Does the government investigate and prosecute those involved in assassinations? Galindo: No. The impunity in Colombia is virtually complete. We have only obtained proof in one case, for a friend of mine who was a petroleum worker. We could prove that a Navy official assassinated him. But the four witnesses who saw what happened have already been assassinated. Among them was a 14-year-old girl. The government moved the trial to the other side of the country. In order for us to go and see what is going on, we have to travel 40 hours by land. It is likely that the case will be abandoned. MM: What are the working conditions in Colombia like? Galindo: Ninety percent of the workers in Colombia earn only the minimum wage. That is $80 a month. But the family basket [the basic goods which a family needs] costs three salaries. One visit to the doctor costs three days of work. Worse, 50 percent of workers earn less than the minimum wage. Women's working conditions are especially bad. They wash clothes and do other domestic work for $1 a day. Among men who work in the informal economy, the situation is the same. Some buy sunglasses in a market and sell them on a corner, and they earn just one or two dollars a day. Therefore, many members of the family need to work, including children. The peasant children begin working at the age of seven, without payment. The children that work recycling trash or making bricks for construction work for only their own food. The children in the coal mines--and there are many--are paid for the amount they mine. But they are paid only for the coal itself, not for sterile material. Coal miners, who normally die at the age of 40, say they would prefer to have daughters than sons, because boys will have to go to the mine at the age of 10; girls at least have the hope of marrying another miner. But I am talking now only about the 500,000 children who do work outside the home. Most children--60 percent--have to do domestic work. In Colombia, it is normal that if children don't work outside the home, they have to take care of a small child at home. The children know how to run family affairs but they don't know how to count to ten. This, I think, is the worst violence that can be exercised against the people, because it destroys the children, who are our future. MM: Do the mines owned by multinationals use child labor? Galindo: No. Exxon has the largest coal mine. The children work in what are called small- and medium-sized mines. And the small and medium mines are under the control of the 450 who make up the ruling elite. But there are serious problems with the Exxon mine. In the last four years, 32 workers have died there. We don't know the reason. The worker is normally working, suddenly he becomes paralyzed and in a few days he dies. This happens only in the Exxon mine. MM: Does your union focus on worker safety issues? Galindo: The petroleum movement, which is the oldest in the country--my syndicate was founded in 1922--was born fighting for living conditions, for occupational health conditions. It is one of our policies, the protection of the worker. We have achieved a few things in the areas of job stability, health, education and retirement funds. We place less emphasis on salary, because without those four things, it is not worth a salary. If you don't have a job, if you don't have health, if you don't have education and you don't have any future, what is it worth to have a salary? MM: What sort of solutions do you envision for the problems you are describing? Do you support nationalization of the multinationals' operations? Galindo: The policy of our federation is the nationalization of natural resources. We have a problem of technological dependence. We don't have technology. We need to develop it. But in order to do so, we need to be sovereign in our resources. We say that the resources will be the property of Colombia and that they will be developed according to the needs of Latin America and Colombia. Natural resource products will be exported only when the basic needs of the population are filled. That requires that the multinationals be controlled; in exchange for benefitting from our resources, they will have the obligation to provide us with technology. Then the people will be able to plan their own future. Now, the multi-nationals plan the "development" of the country for their own benefit. MM: Are you optimistic about political changes that could bring about what you are asking for? Galindo: Yes. Colombia is the best place in the world to live. Although we have the war, someday we will solve our problems. No bad thing lasts forever. Each and every country has to undergo its own struggle. But we must work toward one goal: the poor countries cannot continue to be poor. Colombia cannot think that Colombia by itself will achieve that. We must find our common points. We are going to achieve something only if all of Latin America pulls together. The same is true in Africa, Asia and for the poor of North America. It is a world problem. The power which has been accumulated in a few hands represents a danger for humanity.
We have many resources - for instance, we have 14 percent of the world's coal reserves - but only the multinationals can exploit them.
The multinationals bring their technology, use it and then take it back. After 50 years, they give their old equipment to the state as a present. What can we do with that? It costs more to maintain than it produces.
In the last three years 232 syndicate leaders and activists have been assassinated. In the last two years, four leaders have been murdered from our federation.
Texas Petrolium Co. is the owner of the whole oil field. The largest private army is operating in that field and so is one of the central controls of the narcotraffickers.
Coal miners, who normally die at the age of 40, say they would prefer to have daughters than sons, because boys will have to go to the mine at the age of 10; girls at least have the hope of marrying another miner.
The policy of our federation in the nationalization of natural resources. We have a problem of technological dependence. We don't have technology. We need to develop it. But in order to do so, we need to be sovereign in our resources.