Struggle to survive and to be heard, many of South America’s indigenous people are getting lost in the media jungle. To its credit the United Nations is trying to do more to bring to light the struggle. The UN has identified “10 Stories the World Should Hear More About.” The United Nations Under Secretary General for Communications and Public Information Kiyo Akasaka initiated this effort. The banner is: “The United Nations tries to make sure that stories that do not necessarily grab the headlines, are not forgotten.” This report updates Colombia’s indigenous peoples situation, caught in the middle of what some consider the world’s oldest internal armed conflict. On a visit to Columbia during the Non-Aligned Movement’s Conference in my capacity as Foreign Minister, I was struck by the presence of security forces throughout the country. We were transported by military helicopters from city to city. Fleeing their lands to escape brutal warfare and treatment, the indigenous peoples have been scattered to lands far away from their home. “The struggle to survive and preserve ancient traditions in cities and towns far away from their homes is an often unnoticed casualty of the plight of this second largest group of internally displaced people.” Colombia’s Constitutional Court asserts that almost a third of the country’s indigenous groups “are now at risk of extinction. The Story follows from the United Nations “10.” "After a 16-day journey that took them down three rivers and across miles of thick jungle, six Baro indigenous families arrived in Leticia on the banks of the Amazon River in southern Colombia. When a UNHCR team met with the group in October 2008, they were still recovering from the shock of fleeing their homes the previous month after armed men entered their territory. The Baro families eventually found shelter in a run-down neighborhood on the edge of town, where they now live in cramped conditions and under plastic sheeting, with no sanitation or running water. With less than 700 members, the Baro tribe is one of the smallest of Colombia's 90 indigenous groups, one of the most ethnically diverse populations in the world. Colombia’s indigenous people have traditionally lived on collective territories, often strategically located in areas rich in oil, wood and rare minerals. But a 40-year internal war has fuelled clashes between rival armed groups battling for control of resource-rich lands that are home to thousands of indigenous people. Many indigenous groups also live in coca-growing areas where they are frequently caught in the crossfire of drug militias fighting for control of cocaine smuggling routes. Colombia’s armed conflict has displaced an estimated three million people, about 41,000 of whom are indigenous, according to the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Colombia’s Constitutional Court says at least 27 indigenous groups in Colombia are now considered to be at risk of extinction as a result of armed conflict. Thousands of indigenous people are struggling to survive in towns and cities, estranged from the ancestral lands that have shaped their identities and traditions. With no previous experience living in urban areas, they often fall prey to human trafficking, drugs and prostitution. In Narino, along the Pacific Coast near the border with Ecuador, the Awá people have suffered the highest rate of forced displacement in the country during the last two years. In February 2009, 17 Awá were killed when an armed group attacked civilians following the arrival of Colombian army troops in Telembi Tortugaña, one of the most isolated and conflict-ridden parts of the country. UNHCR has called for a full investigation of the reported killings. The loss of land for indigenous groups across Colombia has shattered communities, traditions and identities. Their survival depends greatly on being able to remain on their ancestral territories and maintain close links to the land. “To lose our land is to lose our self,” said one Siona indigenous man recently after being forced to flee his home." By Ambassador Muhamed Sacirbey Face Book at "Diplomatically Incorrect" Twitter Diplomatically X