By Which Develops the Transitory Article 55 of the Political Constitution

LAW 70 OF 1993

(August 27)

Official newspaper Not. 41.013, of 31 of August of 1993.

By which develops the transitory article 55 Of the Political Constitution.

<Resumen de Notas de Vigencia>

You NOTE OF FORCE:
- For the interpretation of this Law the publisher suggests to keep in mind it arranged by the Article 8O. Literal C. Numeral 2o. of the Law 812 of 2003, "By which the National Plan of Development is approved 2003-2006, toward a common State", published in the Official Newspaper Not. 45.231 of 27 of June of 2003.
The Article mentioned in its original version establishes:
"ARTICLE 8O. L...L
"L...L
"C. BUILDING SOCIAL EQUITY
"L...L
"9. Strengthening of the ethnic groups.
"L...L
"- To Destine the resources and to arrange with the communities afrocolombianas the formulation of a plan of long-term integral development in accordance with the 202020ley 70 Of 1993, since its vision and ethnic-cultural particularities.
" "L...L

THE CONGRESS OF COLOMBIA,

It DECREES:

CHAPTER I. OBJECT AND DEFINITIONS

ARTICLE 1o. The present law considers object to recognize to the black communities that have come occupying uncultivated lands in the rural zones rivers dwellers of the rivers of the Basin of the Pacific, according to its traditional practices of production, the right to the collective property, according to the arranged thing in the following articles. Thus same it has like purpose to establish mechanisms for the protection of the cultural identity and of the rights of the black communities of Colombia as ethnic group, and the promotion of its social and economic development, in order to guaranteeing that these communities obtain real conditions of front opportunities equality al remainder of the Colombian company.

According to it predicted in the parágrafo 1o. of the transitory article 55 Of the Political Constitution, this law will apply also in the rural, uncultivated zones and rivers dwellers that have come being occupied by black communities that have traditional practices of production in other zones of the country and they comply with the requirements established in this law.

ARTICLE 2o. For the effects of the present law is understood for:

1. Basin of the Pacific. It is the region defined by the following geographical limits: since the top of the volcano of Chiles in limits with the republic of the Equator, continues for the divisoria of water of the Western mountain Range passing for the volcano Cumbal and the volcano Azufral, to the Sickle of Minamá; this is crossed, a little more below the estuary of the river Guáitara and continues for the divisoria ofWestern mountain range, passing for the hill Munchique, the Farallones of Cali, The Hills Tatamá, Caramanta and Agreement; of this hill continues for the divisoria of water to the Knot of Paramillo; continues in direction toward the Northwest to the high one of Carrizal, to continue for the divisoria of the water that go al I Laugh Dirty and al Pipe Tumarandó with the ones that go al I laugh Lion to a pointOf Bay Colombia by the left margin of the estuary of the river Surinque in the Gulf. It continues for the line that defines the Coast of the Gulf of Urabá to the international milestone in Tip Tiburón, since this point continues for the line of the international limit among the Republic of Panama and Colombia, to the milestone equidistante among Tip Ardita (Colombia), and Cocalito (Panama), on the coast of the Peaceful Ocean, continues for the coast until arriving at the estuary of the riverInternational limit with the Republic of Equator, to the top of the volcano of Chiles, point of departure.

2. Rivers of the Basin of the Pacific. They are the rivers of the Peaceful region, that understands:

a) The side of the Pacific conformed by the superficial water of the rivers and broken that drenan directly al Peaceful Ocean and of its affluent; basins of the rivers Looks, Rosary, Chaguí, Patía, Curay, Sanquianga, Tola, Tapaje, Iscuandé, Guapí, Timbiquí, Bubuey, Saija, Micay, Naya, Yurumanguí, Large Tomb, Tumbita, Cajambre, Mayorquin, Rest, Anchicayá, Dagua, Bongo, San Juan, Ijuá, Docampadó, Capiro, Ordó, Siriví, Dotendó, Usaraga, Baudó, Piliza, Catripre, Virudo, Coqui,the Valley, pre-colombian tomb, Abega, Cupica, Changuera, Borojó, Curiche, Putumia, Juradó and other smaller river bed that drenan directly al Peaceful Ocean;

B) The basins of the rivers Atrato, Acandí and Tolo that belong to the side of the Caribbean.

3. Rural zones rivers dwellers. They are the earthly aledaños to the banks of the rivers indicated in the numeral previous that are outside of the urban perimeters you defined by the Concejos Municipal of the municipalities of the area in consideration, according to the arranged thing in the Code of the Municipal State (Decree 1333 of 1986), and in the norms that they add it, they develop or they reform, and in which be found written down the respective one.

4. Uncultivated lands. They are the lands situated inside the limits of the national territory that belong al state and that lack another owner, and the ones that, having been judged with that character, they should they return to control of the state, according to what arranges the article 56 of the Law 110 of 1913, and the norms that they add it, they develop or they reform.

5. Black community. It is the ancestry families assembly afrocolombiana that possess an own culture, share a history and have its own traditions and custom inside the relation compo-populated, that reveal and conserve conscience of identity that distinguish them of other ethnic groups.

6. Collective occupation. It is the ancient and historic settlement of black communities in lands for their collective use, that constitute their habitat, and on which develop currently its traditional practices of production.

7. Traditional practices of production. They are the activities and mining, agricultural techniques, of forest extraction, pecuarias, hunting, fishing and harvesting of natural products in general, that have utilized consuetudinariamente the black communities to guarantee the conservation of the life and the development autosostenible.

CHAPTER II.

PRINCIPLES

ARTICLE 3o. The present law is supported in the following principles:

1. The recognition and the protection of the cultural and ethnic diversity and the right to the equality of all the cultures that conform the Colombian nationality.

2. The respect to the integralidad and the dignity of the cultural life of the black communities.

3. The participation of the black communities and its organizations without detriment of its autonomy, in the decisions that affect them and in those of all the standing Nation of equality, according to the law.

4. The protection of the environment attending to the relations established by the black communities with the nature.

CHAPTER III.

RECOGNITION OF THE RIGHT TO THE COLLECTIVE PROPERTY

ARTICLE 4o. The State will judge to the black communities that treats this law the collective property on the areas that, according to the contained definitions in the article segundo, they understand the uncultivated lands of the rural zones rivers dwellers of the rivers of the Basin of the Pacific and those located in the areas that treats the second clause of the article 1O. of the present law that come occupying according to its traditional practices of production.

The earthly regarding which the right to the collective property be determined they will be called for all the legal effects "Lands of the Black Communities".

ARTICLE 5o. To receive in collective property the lands adjudicables, each community will form a Common Counsel as a way of whose, internal administration requirements will determine the regulation that send off the National Government.

Besides the ones that prevea the regulation, are functions of the Common Counsels: to delimit and to assign areas al interior of the lands judged; to watch for the conservation and protection of the rights of the collective property, the preservation of the cultural identity, the aprovechamiento and the conservation of the natural resources; to choose al legal representative of the respective community as soon as legal person, and to do of friendly componedores in the conflictsInternal feasible of conciliation.

ARTICLE 6o. Save the floors and the forests, the collective awarding that be done according to this law, do not understand:

A. The control on the goods of public use.

B. The urban areas of the municipalities.

C. The renewable natural resources and not renewable.

D. The lands of native shelters legally constituted.

E. The subsoil and the rural grounds in which private property according to the law be accredited 200 of 1936.

F. The areas reserved for the security and national defense.

G. Areas of the system of National Parks.

With regard to the floors and the forests included in the collective qualification, the property will exercise in social function and is it inherent an ecological function. Consequently, for the use of these resources the following thing will keep in mind himself:

A. so much the use of the forests that exercise for department of law, as the aprovechamientos forest with commercial end they should guarantee the persistence of the resource. To advance these last authorization of the competent company for the management of the forest resource is required.

B. The use of the floors will cause keeping in mind the ecological fragility of the Basin of the Pacific. Consequently the adjudicatarios will develop practices of conservation and compatible management with the ecological conditions. For such effect they will develop appropriate models of production as the agrosilvicultura, the agroforestería or other similar, designing the suitable mechanisms to stimulate them and for desestimular the environmentally unsustainable practices.

ARTICLE 7o. In each community, the part of the land of the black community destined to its collective use is inalienable, imprescriptible and inembargable.

Only they will be able to be alienated the areas that are assigned to a family group, by the dissolution of that or other causes that indicate the regulation, but the exercise of the preferential right of occupation or acquisition only will be able to fall in other members of the community and in its defect in another member of the ethnic group, for the purpose of preserving the integrity of the lands of the black communities and theOf the same.

ARTICLE 8o. For the effects of the awarding that treats the article 4O., each community will present the respective request al Colombian Institute of the Agrarian Reform -Incora.- This will be able to initiate of position the awarding.

A commission comprising the Incora, the Geographical Institute "Agustín Codazzi" and the Inderena or the company that do its times will carry out, subject to report of the Common Counsel, a technical evaluation of the requests and will determine the limits of the area that will be offered by means of the title of collective property.

ARTICLE 9o. To the request the following information will be accompanied:

A. physical Description of the territory that intends holder.

B. Preceding etnohistóricos.

C. demographic Description of the territory.

D. Traditional practices of production.

ARTICLE 10. It situated the request the respective regional manager will order a visit to the black community interested, which he will not be able to exceed of sixty counted days from the radicación of the request. The resolution that orders the visit will be notified it al black group interested, to the respective organization and al delegated proxy for agrarian matters.

Of the visit practiced a minutes will raise himself that contain the following points:

A. Location of the land.

B. approximate Extension of the land.

C. General boundaries of the land.

D. Number of black inhabitants that live in the land.

E. Name and number of strange persons that do not belong to the community established, indicating the approximate area that occupy.

F. Lifting planimétrico from the territory to be titled.

ARTICLE 11. The Colombian Institute of the Agrarian Reform -Incora- in a term improrrogable of sixty (60) days, will send off the administrative acts through which the collective property to the communities be judged that treats the present law.

The corresponding administrative act will be notified al representative of the respective community and, once recorded in the competent registration, will constitute sufficient title of control and test of the property.

ARTICLE 12. In the administrative procedure of the qualification of the lands that determine the Government by means of special regulation will be given preferential application to the principles of efficacy, economy and speed, with the purpose to achieve the opportune effectiveness of the rights recognized in the present law. In the aspects done not contemplate in this law or in the regulation, will apply the general legislation on uncultivated lands of the Nation in which be compatible with the nature and purposes of the recognition to the property of the black communities that treats this law.

ARTICLE 13. The lands adjudicables will be submitted to all the servants that be necessary for the development of the adjacent lands.

Reciprocally, the lands aledañas that continue being of the control of the state will be submitted the indispensable servants for the benefit of the lands of the communities, according to the legislation in force.

ARTICLE 14. In the administrative act by means of which the collective property of the land be judged will be consigned the obligation to observe the norms on conservation, protection and rational utilization of the renewable natural resources and the environment.

ARTICLE 15. The occupations that advance per person not pertinent al black ethnic group on the lands judged in collective property to the black communities that treats this law not to will give straight al interested to obtain the qualification neither the recognition of improvements and for all the legal effects will be considered like possessor of bad faith.

ARTICLE 16. The services of collective qualification in favor of the black communities that treats the present law they will be free and by the inscription and publication of the resolutions of awarding that send off the Colombian Institute of the Agrarian Reform themselves not to will charge straight some.

ARTICLE 17. From the force of the present law, to so much himself have not judged in due form the collective property to a black community that occupy a land in the terms that this law establishes, not the lands occupied by said community will be judged neither authorizations will be offered to exploit in her natural resources without prior concept of the Commission that treats the article 8O.

ARTICLE 18. They will not be able to be done awarding of the lands of the black communities that treats this law, but bound for the same.

They are nulas the awarding of lands that be done with violation of it predicted in the previous clause. The action of nullity against the respective resolution will be able to be tried for the Colombian Institute of the Agrarian Reform, the agrarian proxies or any person before the corresponding Administrative Court, inside the two (2) following years to its achievement, or since its publication in the Official Newspaper, according to the case.

Without damage of the previous thing, the Colombian Institute of the Agrarian Reform will be able to revoke directly the resolutions of awarding that dictate with violation of it established in the present article. In this case himself not the express consent will be required and writing of the respective holder. In it others, the procedure of revocación will be supplied in accordance with what arranges the Code of Administrative the Quarrelsome thing.

CHAPTER IV.

USE OF THE LAND AND PROTECTION OF THE NATURAL RESOURCES AND OF THE ENVIRONMENT

ARTICLE 19. The traditional practices that exercise on the water, the beaches or banks, the secondary fruits of the forest or on the fauna and aquatic and terrestrial flora for alimentary end or the utilization of renewable natural resources for construction or repair of dwellings, enclosures, canoes and other domestic elements for use of the members of the respective black community are considered uses by department of the law and consequentlyDo not they require permission.

These uses should be exercised of such way that the persistence of the resources, so much in quantity be guaranteed as in quality.

The exercise of the hunt, fishing or harvesting of products, for the subsistence, will have prelación on any aprovechamiento commercial, semi-industrial, industrial or sports.

ARTICLE 20. Comply the article arranges it 58 Of the Political Constitution, the collective property on the areas to that refers this law, should be exercised according to the ecological and social function that is it inherent. Consequently, the holders should comply the obligations of protection of the environment and of the renewable natural resources and to contribute with the authorities in the defense of that patrimony.

ARTICLE 21. According to the arranged thing in the article anterior, The members of the black communities, holders of the right of collective property, they will continue conserving, maintaining or favoring the regeneration of the protective vegetation of water and guaranteeing by means of an adequate use the persistence of especially fragile ecosystems, as the manglares and humedales, and protecting and conserving the species of fauna and wild flora threatened or in danger of extinction.