HRW: More than 400 social leaders assassinated since 2016 in Colombia

Relatives and friends of Luis Dagua, a murdered peasant leader whose body was found on the side of a highway with apparent signs of violence, attend his funeral in the rural area of ​​Caloto, Cauca department, Colombia, on July 18, 2018. Human Roght Watch denounced in a new report the murder of social leaders in the country.

(Credit: Luis Robayo / AFP / Getty Images)

(CNN) -

Colombia recorded the highest number of human rights defenders killed in Latin America and the government's protection mechanisms have "serious deficiencies."

This is stated by Human Rights Watch (HRW) in its report "Unprotected leaders and defenseless communities: murders of human rights defenders in remote areas of Colombia" published this Wednesday.

The organization denounces that, according to data from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, 421 people were murdered in the country until December 2020 and since 2016, the year in which the peace agreement was reached between the government. and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).

Human Rights Watch notes that this event resulted in the demobilization of the FARC, leaving a void occupied by other armed groups that are currently vying for control of the territories.

The NGO documented cases that occurred in the South American country in the last five years and the different dynamics behind them in the most affected areas in the country.

These are North of Cauca, Catatumbo, South Pacific, Lower Cauca, Upper and Lower Caguán and Piedemonte de Arauca.

advertising

Between April 2020 and January 2021, they interviewed more than 130 people in 20 departments in Colombia.

The interviews included human rights defenders, prosecutors, state officials, and members of international organizations.

What are the causes of the attacks in Colombia?

This says Human Rights Watch

According to Human Rights Watch, in Colombia attacks on human rights defenders are a complex issue that cannot be explained with just one dynamic.

First, they point to the limited presence of the state, especially in rural areas.

There, certain social leaders are exposed to greater risks since they frequently play an important role in tasks that would generally be carried out by local government officials.

Furthermore, they documented that armed groups oppress human rights defenders and try to force them to abide by their own “rules” in the communities.

Lastly, they explain that the support of the defenders to some initiatives of the peace agreement, such as the substitution of coca crops, exposed them to more risks.

Regarding the role of the government, the organization states that, although a wide variety of policies, mechanisms and laws were adopted, their implementation has been “deficient”.

The government of Iván Duque has not reacted to this report.

Last week, he announced the creation of an intersectoral table and a roadmap to unify methodologies and the gathering of information related to the murders of social leaders, based on the investigations of the Attorney General's Office.

"We want to have a figure where roaming hand in hand with the Prosecutor's Office, with the presence of specialized groups of the public force, makes us more effective," said Duque.