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14 November, 2005
A 12-day hunger strike by five members of Colombian oil workers’ union Sindical Obrera de la Industria Del Petroleo (USO) ended 3 November.
The hunger strikers ended their fast after winning assurances from the archbishop of Cartagena and the governor of Bolivár state that they would present a public proposition to the national government to prohibit privatisation of state-run Ecopetrol’s oil refinery in Cartagena. Archbishop Jorge Enrique Giménez and Gov. Libardo Simancas have committed to present the plan within 30 days.
The Uribe government has plans to sell 51% of Colombia’s second largest oil refinery. The hunger strikers of USO, which solely represents Ecopetrol workers in Colombia, included Rodolfo Vecino, Hernando Meneses, Rafael Cabarcas, Édgar Mojica, and Jorge Ortega.