Local U Party head accuses criminal gang “La Cordillera” of waging a campaign of threats and intimidation against politicians and their supporters in the city of Pereira, west Colombia, El Espectador reported Wednesday.
Senator Carlos Enrique Soto, who is President of the U Party in the department of Risaralda, claimed gang members have been removing publicity for U Party mayor candidate Enrique Vasquez Zuleta, smashing windows with his posters and threatening residents in the name of “La Cordillera.”
According to the senator, the anti-election campaign has been most active in neighborhoods renowned for small-scale drug dealing.
Soto also demanded to see more progress in police investigations into an attack in which a vehicle belonging to Zuleta was shot up.
He added, “we need guarantees to be able to freely express ideas, the defense of candidates and the right to vote.”
