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href="http://www.telesurtv.net/english/news/Three-Social-Leaders-Murdered-in-Colombia-in-Only-72-Hours-20170812-0001.html">http://www.telesurtv.net/english/news/Three-Social-Leaders-Murdered-in-Colombia-in-Only-72-Hours-20170812-0001.html</a></font>
<h1 id="reader-title">Three Social Leaders Murdered in Colombia
in Only 72 Hours</h1>
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<div id="reader-estimated-time">August 12, 2017<br>
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<p>The Colombian activist and social leader Fernando
Asprilla was murdered on Friday in the Cauca department,
and was the third death of a social leader recorded in a
72 hour period.</p>
<p>The Ombudsman of Colombia, Carlos Alfonso Negret
Mosquera, showed in a recent report that during the
period between the first of January, 2016, and March 1st
of 2017, at least 156 homicides, five disappearances,
and 33 violent attacks against community and social
leaders occurred.</p>
<p>According to the report given by Negret, one of the
primary causes of the deadly trend is the continued
operations of illegal armed right-wing paramilitary
organizations that have occupied territory left behind
by the disarming Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia
– People's Army (FARC – EP).</p>
<p>Human rights defenders and activists in the districts
of Antioquia, Arauca, Atlantico, Bolivar, Caldas,
Caqueta, Casanare, Cauca, Cesar, Cordoba, Cundinamarca,
Choco, Huila, La Guajira, Magdalena, Meta, Nariño, Norte
de Santander, Putumayo, Risaralda, Santander, Tolima and
Cauca Valley have been assasinated since the FARC's
demobilization process began.</p>
<p>As they have handed over their weapons and negotiated
terms of peace with the Colombian government, FARC-EP
has consistently demanded that the state works to
dismantle paramilitarism in the country, saying its
ongoing violence represents the greatest threat to the
peace process.</p>
<p>The government however, has largely ignored the
existence of paramilitaries, claiming that they were
demobilized during Alvaro Uribe's presidential term
between 2006 and 2008. FARC-EP leaders have pointed out
that many of the groups have been reclassified as
criminal gangs, but continue to represent the same
threat as always by assasinating leaders who fight for
human and land rights.</p>
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<div class="moz-signature">-- <br>
Freedom Archives
522 Valencia Street
San Francisco, CA 94110
415 863.9977
<a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="http://www.freedomarchives.org">www.freedomarchives.org</a>
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