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OUR COVID-19 RESPONSE IN COLOMBIA

 

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Right now, Médecins Sans Frontières is providing much needed support and medical care in over 30 countries to counter the COVID-19 pandemic.
 
Our teams are also gearing up to confront potential outbreaks in the hundreds of areas we were already working before the pandemic struck. We are deploying medical staff, sending supplies and applying nearly 50 years of experience fighting epidemics to protect the most vulnerable and save lives.

 
Can you help increase our capacity to respond by making a donation to our COVID-19 Crisis Appeal?

 

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FIND OUR MORE ABOUT CORONAVIRUS COVID-19

Colombia is a country rich in natural resources, but over five decades of conflict has taken a heavy toll on its people.

Despite the government and FARC rebels signing a historic peace accord in 2016, violence involving armed groups and drug cartels is still rife, and civilians continue to be caught up in the cycle of violence as criminal organisations fight for control of territory.

Significant parts of Colombian territory are still disputed by criminal organisations, former FARC (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia) combatants who have refused to demobilise, and ELN (National Liberation Army) guerrillas. 

Colombia

Many people living in Buenaventura's slums are victims of forced displacement. The slums lack electricity or running water, and are continuously exposed to violence at the hands of local gangs and criminal groups. © Soszynska / MSF

Helping people cope with extreme violence, loss and displacement 

MSF provides psychological support to family members of victims of forced disappearance, offering mental health consultations and groups sessions for those affected. 

After more than half a century of war, millions of Colombians have been displaced from their homes and land, tens of thousands are missing, and hundreds of thousands still wait for them to return.

Psychological support has been extended to people in urban communities in areas of Tumaco and Buenaventura who have experienced violence, related to both crime and armed groups.

Teams have also provided comprehensive medical aid to victims of sexual violence, and supported women seeking to terminate pregnancies. Despite liberal legislation in this regard, barriers still exist for women seeking access to safe medical assistance. 

Gisela Díaz, a sexual assault survivor, recalls how psychological treatment from MSF changed her life, allowing her to become a leader in her own community and help other women work through some of the same challenges she has faced. © Marta Soszynska / MSF 

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Médecins Sans Frontières Australia Ltd. ABN: 74 068 758 654. Registered Charity Number: CFN 11960.
All donations are processed in AUD. Donations over $2 are tax-deductible in Australia only.