We urge the British Government to exercise a meaningful leadership in mitigating climate change by requesting the Colombian Government to prevent the extraction of coal in La Puente Pit; in the Cerrejon mine, to guarantee the rights at risk of the Wayuu communities in the face of the threat of irreversible damage due to the destruction of the ecosystem of the Bruno stream. 

As people in Britain, we have supported the voices of the Wayuú, Afro-descendant and Campesino peoples of La Guajira because we understand that the destruction of their territory and culture is a problem that has its origin in the high energy consumption in the UK, since the coal from Cerrejón has been used in our country. Cerrejon mine has been historically operated by Anglo American, BHP and Glencore

The UK has shown leadership in cutting carbon emissions to mitigate the effect of climate change by stopping all coal consumption by 2024 and encouraging global action through its organisation of the COP26 negotiations. The international role to which the UK has committed itself has been to strengthen climate actions around the world, ensuring that communities vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, such as communities in Latin America, are prioritised, their concerns heard, but also their impacts and damages are addressed. However, the companies that part-owned this mine, until a few months ago, such as Anglo American and BHP, as well as the current owner Glencore, are all listed on the London Stock Exchange. Effective leadership in mitigating climate change must be represented not only by stopping coal consumption, but also by stopping coal mining and leaving the coal in the ground. 

We understand the seriousness of the permanent diversion of the Bruno stream as an open door for the expansion of the Cerrejón coal mine in the Tajo La Puente. In these times of climate crisis, the expansion of a coal mine has no justification, much less when the real cost of this extraction is represented not only in the exacerbation of a global environmental problem, the destruction of water sources and the tropical dry forest in the semi-desert area of La Guajira, but also in the cultural disappearance of the Wayuu indigenous people. 

Additionally, we know that to allow open-pit coal mining is to allow the health of the people living near the mine to be affected. This has been amply demonstrated in several scientific studies. Even the United Nations has called for the closure of Cerrejón's operations, https://news.un.org/es/story/2020/09/1481412. 

We know that action to combat climate change is important to the UK. That is why we urge the British Government to take leadership on this issue to request the Colombian government to prevent and protect the Arroyo Bruno and the impacts that the Wayuú and Afro-Descendant communities are facing. We urge that you make immediate representations to the Colombian Government to ensure that this damaging mine expansion project is stopped before it is too late.