USA: Federal appeals court dismisses lawsuit against Drummond over alleged complicity in killings in Colombia
"Drummond Cleared on Death Squad Murders", 26 Mar 2015
Relatives of victims killed by Colombian paramilitary forces cannot sue Drummond Co. in U.S. courts for its alleged support of the murders and other war crimes, the 11th Circuit ruled. Drummond…allegedly conspired with right-wing paramilitary forces of Autodefensas Unidas de Colombia (AUC) to murder and terrorize union workers at mines owned by its Colombian subsidiaries…The Colombian government criminalized membership in and support of paramilitary groups in 1991. However, private security groups known as "convivir" units still organized under AUC leadership, and claimed to provide security for companies from left-wing attacks. The 11th Circuit recently threw out a similar lawsuit…basing its decision on the Supreme Court's ruling in Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum…Similarly in this case, the 11th Circuit found that the alleged violations of international law all took place in Colombia, not in the U.S.