In front of the altar, a modest wooden coffin. "Because you loved Astrid, you too are victims of violence, and you must do everything you can to end it", said the priest. This Sunday morning, in the small church of Espiritu Santo in Bogota, those who listen to his sermon, are for the most part former guerrillas and former guerrillas of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) who signed the peace in 2016.
Four days earlier, on March 6, Astrid Conde was killed in the popular Kennedy district. In broad daylight. The death of this 40-year-old woman "Engaged in a process of reincorporation into civilian life" brings the number of veterans who have been murdered since disarming to 188. Fifteen were this year, two in Bogota.
"We are the victims of a massacre", sighs Doris, who has come to bury the one who was her partner in arms. The communiqué of the political party of the Joint Revolutionary Armed Force (FARC) denounces "An extermination campaign waged before the eyes of a lazy government".
Hitmen
Human rights organizations are also concerned about the government's inaction. Especially since the targeted assassinations are not only targeting ex-combatants. Peasants, elected officials and local activists who defend the rights of their communities are also targeted. According to the Institute for Development and Peace Studies (Indepaz), 817 of these "social leaders" have been murdered since 1er December 2016, 53 this year.
Astrid spent seventeen years in the bush. According to local press, she was for a while the companion of Miguel Botache, alias "Gentil Duarte", one of the FARC commanders who took up arms. Arrested in 2012 and sentenced for participating in an armed assault on a police station, she was released in 2017 as part of the peace agreement.
His alleged murderer was captured by the police. "The indications gathered indicate that Jhonatan Sneider would have received an advance to find and murder his victim", according to the prosecution. Hitmen are easy to find in Colombia.
The UN "tea towel"
End of 2019, "The most violent year for FARC ex-combatants", the UN asked "More effective measures to protect their lives". But relations between the government of Ivan Duque and the United Nations are tense to say the least. Released in late February, the annual report on the situation in Colombia by the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, was warmly received in Bogota. Emilio Archila, the president’s adviser responsible for implementing the peace deal, called the UN report " tea towel ".
