Network of experiences
Here you will find all the interviews conducted with expert human rights defenders who have worked closely with survivors of eye violence from different disciplines.
Among them are psychologists who have accompanied therapeutic processes, lawyers who have accompanied judicial processes, sociologists who have examined how this affects society as a whole, and artists who, from their field of knowledge, propose strategies of reparation and resistance for survivors.
Gabriela Golder
Gabriela Golder, an Argentine visual artist and educator, grew up marked by the dictatorship and her family’s activism for human rights. Her work focuses on memory, identity, and state violence, themes shaped by her research on eye trauma in Chile and Colombia. Her work combines art and political denunciation, highlighting collective resistance against repression. Her experience with eye-injury victims reinforced her conviction that this violence is systematic and global, and that community organizing is a path to transformation.
Daniela Buriticá
Daniela Buriticá, a psychologist and human rights defender, began her work accompanying political prisoners and later specialized in psychosocial support for victims of police violence, including eye violence. Her work has united theory and practice, allowing her to understand structural and community-level harm beyond individual trauma. She has taken part in reports, accompaniment during protests, and organizing processes, insisting on comprehensive multidisciplinary responses and on defending the dignity and rights of victims.
Henry Salazar
Henry Salazar holds a degree in Social Sciences from Universidad Distrital. He has worked with MOCAO (movement of resistance against eye attacks by the ESMAD), is an expert on the regulatory framework for people living with disabilities, and currently devotes himself to the defense of human rights. His contributions are useful for the self-recognition of persons with disabilities as subjects of rights.
José Luis Blanco
José Luis Blanco, a psychologist at CAPS, has accompanied victims of the armed conflict and of police violence for more than a decade. He was among the first to attend to cases of eye rupture starting in 2008. He identifies physical, emotional, family, and social effects. He considers eye violence to constitute torture due to its intentionality. He proposes a specialized state program for victims based on dignity, comprehensive health, and a psychosocial approach.
Clarissa
Clarissa, a specialist in mental health and trauma, explains that eye injuries generate lifelong physical, psychological, family, and social consequences. She explains PTSD, depression, identity disruption, academic difficulties, and isolation. She affirms that eye trauma must be considered torture due to its intentionality and permanent effects. Her approach unites health, memory, and human rights.
Óscar Ramírez
Óscar Ramírez is a member of the Committee of Solidarity with Political Prisoners (CSPP). His work reflects a sustained commitment to social struggles and to those who have been deprived of liberty for reasons related to protest. He has served as a lawyer for victims of eye violence and knows firsthand the legal needs of this type of process.
Paulina Farfán
Paulina Andrea Farfán is a political scientist and human rights defender. Since 2021 she has worked in coordination with victims of eye violence and with police reform processes. Her work stands out for strengthening networks, organizing the National Gathering of Victims of Eye Violence, and always placing victims at the center of proposals.
Fernanda Espinoza
Fernanda Espinoza is a Colombian historian specialized in historical memory and processes of accompaniment for victims. She has collected more than 180 testimonies from victims of state violence, and has documented eye violence and recent acts of repression. Her work is aimed at strengthening memory, accompanying social struggles, and contributing to the demands for truth, justice, and non-repetition.
