On 10 September 2005, the Colombian trade unionist Luciano Romero was brutally stabbed to death by paramilitaries in Valledupar, Cesar, in the northeastern part of Colombia. Romero had previously been employed for many years by the Colombian Nestlé-subsidiary Cicolac. The management of the subsidiary had stigmatized him as a guerrilla fighter; the Swiss management had not reacted adequately regarding these accusations. Together with the Colombian trade union SINALTRAINAL and Colombian lawyers, including Alirio Uribe, on 5 March 2012, ECCHR submitted a
criminal complaint in Switzerland against the company Nestlé and five of its managers for negligent homicide by omission.
The documentary by Temps Présent (Radio Télévision Suisse) gives an account of the murder of Luciano Romero as well as his Philippine trade union colleague, Diosdado Fortuna, who was killed several days later, on 22 September 2005, after a protest in front of the Nestlé-factory in the Philippines.
After the screening, the status of the case in Switzerland will be explained and its significance in Colombia evaluated. In addition, the responsibility of transnational corporations acting in weak governance zones will be discussed.
