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To date, over 570 social leaders and human rights defenders have been murdered in the South American country.
Colombia' social leader Sigifredo Gutierrez Friday was killed in the department of Cauca by unknown assailants, and his death joins the over 680 homicide cases that have occurred in the country since the signing of the Peace Agreement in 2016.
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Local authorities announced that Gutierrez, who had a physical disability, was shot dead at around 21h00 local time by unknown men who later escaped from the scene.
After the attack, neighbours tried to assist him, but the social leader died because of the severe injuries.
Gutierrez was president of the Community Action Board of San Isidro, Cauca and was also the coordinator of a coronavirus checkpoint in his local community.
Él era Sigifredo Gutiérrez Tunubalá, el líder social y defensor de derechos humanos asesinado hoy en el corregimiento de San Isidro, municipio de Morales, Cauca.
— Carlos Cerón (@carlosaceron) July 18, 2020
¡No cesa la horrible noche! @DefensoriaCol @MinInterior @Indepaz @GobCauca @IvanDuque @NancyPatricia_G pic.twitter.com/YB8VZhEbT0
The 57-year-old social leader led projects that benefited the campesino community. During the pandemic, Gutierrez managed to collect aids for local families who weren’t able to buy food due to the pandemic.
Political leaders and activists condemn the attack through social media and demanded the murder to be investigated.
On Friday, the United Nations (UN) High Commissioner for Human Rights condemned the murder of a kid from the Embera Indigenous community amid clashes between armed groups.
Social leaders' killings by paramilitaries in Colombia seem unstoppable despite COVID-19 lockdown. pic.twitter.com/YZkudv8M0U
— teleSUR English (@telesurenglish) March 25, 2020
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