“Quarantine marred by killings of Colombia’s social and environmental leaders” – 21 May 2020

…According to the Institute of Studies for Development and Peace (INDEPAZ), during two months of lockdown, 25 activists have been murdered for protecting indigenous autonomy, endangered habitats from illegal mining and rights of vulnerable Afro-descendent populations…Since the start of this year, 100 social leaders have been killed by paramilitaries, FARC dissidents, ELN guerrilla and other criminal groups protecting lucrative drug routes. Among the departments most affected are Cauca, Antioquia, Norte de Santander, Valle del Cauca, Nariño, Córdoba and Magdalena…According to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Colombia’s “confinement measures have become an opportunity to kill and threaten indigenous people, social leaders and farmers, and seize territory of illicit economies.” The international organization references the precarious situation of public order in Cauca where 13 civic leaders have been killed so far in 2020, among them, Hugo de Jesús Giraldo on April 22 as lockdown completed a first month…“The COVID-19 pandemic and restrictions imposed by the government and by communities themselves to avoid the spread of the virus seem to have aggravated an already violent and volatile situation,” states UN spokesperson Robert Colville. “Armed groups as well as criminal groups appear to be taking advantage of the fact that most of the people are in lockdown to expand their presence and control over the territory,” he said…UN Secretary-General António Guterres has called for a global ceasefire so that measures aimed at preventing the spread of COVID-19 can be properly implemented in nations with internal conflicts…