Colombian Campesinos Denounce Killing of Social Leader

Members of the Colombian social movement Marcha Patriotica have condemned the assassination of Jose Alberto Turijano, a social leader of the movement who was killed in the Middle Orange Trail in the region of Corinto, Cauca.

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One member of the movement told the press that about 50 soldiers opened fire on 400 peasants who had asked why they had arrested two villagers earlier.

When the group of soldiers from the High Mountain Battalion No. 8 opened fire, Turijano, a leader of Marcha Patriotica, as well as the coordinator of the Peasants' Guard in the village of Rio Negro, was shot and killed.

"09/21/17 Corinto-Cauca. Group of soldiers opened fire on peasants, resulting in the death of Mr. Jose Alberto Turijano."

The communique said that members of the village surrounded the soldiers to demand justice for the murder.

Two other members of the Indigenous organization were also injured: Gonzalo Iquina and Jhonatan Hernandez.

Campesinos and members of other social organizations are in the process of gathering photos, videos and other evidence in order to file an official report and make a criminal complaint against the soldier who shot Turijano.