Police officers wearing masks patrol the streets of Cali, Colombia, on Sunday, 22 March 2020. Photo: AFP
Police officers wearing masks patrol the streets of Cali, Colombia, on Sunday, 22 March 2020. Photo: AFP

By Joe Parkin Daniels
23 March 2020

BOGOTÁ (The Guardian) – Death squads in Colombia are taking advantage of coronavirus lockdowns to murder rural activists, local NGOs have warned.

When cities across the country introduced local quarantine measures last week, three social leaders were killed, and as the country prepares to impose a national lockdown on Wednesday, activists have warned that more murders will follow.

Marco Rivadeneira, a high-profile activist, was murdered in the southern Putumayo province, Ángel Ovidio Quintero was shot dead in the western Antioquia region, and Ivo Humberto Bracamonte was killed on the eastern border with Venezuela.

Colombia is one of the most dangerous countries in the world for activists and community leaders, who often fall foul of armed groups fighting for territory. […]

A woman and a man stand in a cemetery in Colombia. Three people have died and there are 277 cases in Colombia on 23 March 2020, as the local authorities impose restrictions. Death squads in Colombia are taking advantage of coronavirus lockdowns to murder rural activists, local NGOs have warned. Photo: Luis Robayo / AFP / Getty Images
A woman and a man stand in a cemetery in Colombia. Three people have died and there are 277 cases in Colombia on 23 March 2020, as the local authorities impose restrictions. Death squads in Colombia are taking advantage of coronavirus lockdowns to murder rural activists, local NGOs have warned. Photo: Luis Robayo / AFP / Getty Images

“I’ve been getting more death threats since everyone started talking about coronavirus,” said Carlos Paez, a land rights activist in a cattle-ranching region near the northern border with Panama. “One message said that they know who I am – and that now is the time to take me out.”

Some of the armed groups are dissident Farc fighters who refused to hand in their guns; others belong to smaller rebel armies and rightwing paramilitary militias. […]

“They are playing with our lives because they know that our bodyguards, the police and the justice system are going to be even less effective they usually are,” said Paez. “It’s horrible. I’m scared for my life.” […]

“We are being killed, like always,” said Héctor Marino Carabali, a rights activist in Cauca, who usually travels in an armoured car with a security detail provided by the government. “The government has taken drastic measures to fight the virus, but done nothing to protect us now or to tell us about how we can do our work. Curfews and lockdowns always affect the most vulnerable.” [more]

Colombian death squads exploiting coronavirus lockdown to kill activists