Colombia 2019: five social leaders assassinated in first five days of the year

Maritza Quiroz (Image: Agencia de Renovación del Territorio)

With the assassination of Maritza Quiroz, a 60-year-old victims representative, Colombia lost its fifth social leader in 2019.

Quiroz was shot dead by armed men in the farm she and other female victims of the country’s armed conflict had been granted by the government in a rural part of Santa Marta.

The victim, whose husband was assassinated in 2013, had been elected by the women to represent them in their attempts to have land devolved that was dispossessed during the armed conflict.


How to steal land the size of a small country and get away with it


The killing of the victims representative was rejected by Vice-President Marta Lucia Ramirez and the Agency for Territorial Renovation who worked with Quiroz in the implementation of a 2016 peace deal with demobilized FARC guerrillas.

Marta Lucia Ramirez
Agency for Territorial Renovation

The violent first days of 2019 followed the bloodiest year for social leaders since the peace process began. According to the Ombudsman’s Office, 164 leaders were assassinated last year. Think tank Indepaz put this number as high as 226 until November 17 last year.


Assassinated social leaders since 2016


Who is killing the social leaders


Many of the victims were working with state agencies to implement the peace deal, in particular the program to reduce drug trafficking and the restitution of dispossessed land, according to the National University.


Colombia kicks off radical new counter-narcotics strategy, narcos respond immediately


The ongoing assassinations and death threats are terrifying communities and especially their leaders.

Anonymous social leader via El Colombiano

Related posts

Colombia’s government and ELN guerrillas seek resumption of peace talks

Colombia’s police kills former army major in operation against EGC

“Late US coal tycoon personally ordered union killings in Colombia”