Several
cities around the world joined Colombia’s vigil Friday to protest
the systematic murder of social and community leaders.
In
Colombia's capital city of Bogota, and in Medellin thousands gathered
with lit candles to reject incidents of violence, which seems to have
become the norm.
“We
scream in silence that we don’t tolerate one more murder, no more
violence, no more aggression against our human rights defenders, no
more paramilitary structures trying to silence us.
#TheyWon’tSilenceUs #TheCpuntryFirst @CountryFirst,” activist
Mafe Carrascal tweeted.
The
protests and gatherings of solidarity were organized after a
particularly deadly week, during which at least seven social leaders,
including Ana Maria Cortes, a social leader, and coordinator of
Gustavo Petro’s presidential campaign in the city of Caceres,
Antioquia.
Petro
has said that Cortes had denounced the mayor of Caceres and that the
head of the local police threatened her and other campaign workers.
This is consistent with the patterns identified by several social
organizations in a report on socio-political violence targeting human
rights defenders and community leaders.
Vigils
were held in Paris, Valencia, Barcelona, Berlin, Brussels, London,
New York, Rome, and Buenos Aires.
“Many
us are worried that with the change of government the progress
regarding human rights and the peace process might be at risk,”
Chris Duarte, a protester in Bogota told the AP. Duque’s party, the
Democratic Center has already approved reforms on the Special
Jurisdiction for Peace, a central element of the peace accords signed
with former Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC),
effectively delay all hearings related to military and police human
rights violations.
On
Friday morning several organizations presented a report revealing the
murders primarily target Indigenous and Campesino leaders who
challenge economic power, that violence against them is systematic
and that paramilitaries have acted with Colombian state forces
against human rights defenders.
The
number of victims differs. According to the Ombudsman's Office of
Colombia since January 2016, 311 leaders have been killed. The
non-governmental Institute of Studies for Development and Peace has
registered 385 murders since the Colombian government signed a peace
treaty with the demobilized FARC, in November 2016. If the 18 murders
since May 2018 are added, the total number of deaths stands at 403.
In a
statement, Colombia's Attorney General said they would "double
their efforts in defense of social leaders," however, many
fear that a new massacre like the one perpetrated by right-wing
paramilitary groups between the 1980s and 1990s could take place.
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