This was the Velatón in Madrid, Cundinamarca: "We are here to show that social leaders do not die with impunity, and this is something that belongs to the people, rather than to the government itself"

In Colombia there is concern about the numerous crimes that have been presented in different communities towards their social leaders. Even after the signing of the Havana peace agreement, this reality is hitting vulnerable territories that are in post-conflict, threatened by criminal gangs and drug trafficking routes. Society has been forced to demonstrate against these acts of violence, as evidenced on Friday July 6 with the National Velatón for social leaders. The Human Rights Office of the United Nations reports that in Colombia 178 leaders have been killed since 2016, but according to the Ombudsperson's Office, there are already 311 homicides between January 1, 2016 and June 30, 2018.

Leer en español: Colombia: Los pueblos y municipios también se manifiestan contra los asesinatos de líderes sociales

# WeareBeingKilled and we hope for your support this Friday in the country's candle industry, let us care about life! @petrogustavo @angelamrobledo @Antioquia_Petro @JovenAntHumana @Jose_atehortua @HOLLMANMORRIS @pierrealee @EldaSorel @charry_manager @JovenAntHumana @IvanCepedaCast pic.twitter.com/3oARAITo3h

– Teresa Muñoz Lopera (@Teresamunozl) July 4, 2018

Social organizations in support of these communities called on the people to be part of this voice and express their outrage at these events in the so-called Velatones. These are symbolic rallies that consist of lighting candles mainly in the squares of large cities. They have also occurred in several small towns and municipalities such as La Mesa, Madrid, Facatativa, Chia, Zipaquira, Ubaté, among others.

In social media, the hashtag #NosEstanMatando (#WeAreBeingKilled) makes an invitation to demonstrate against these crimes.

LatinAmerican Post was present in the Velatón de Madrid, Cundinamarca, a town on the outskirts of Bogotá, where several groups were present such as Insurlente (Audiovisual Collective), La Semilla, Bakia Foundation, Colectivo Rayces, and Proceso la Semilla.

Esteban Otero, a former member of the Rayces collective, said in a speech: "The harassment that has been presented is manifest from end to end in the country is really outrageous. The struggle for human rights is something that concerns us all. Many of those affected are indigenous and afro-descendant communities. What is sought is to give a point of view beyond the city, to feel that in the villages also all kinds of violence are rejected. Many Colombians materialize the death and our own deaths do not hurt us, we are here to demonstrate that the social leaders do not die with impunity, and this is something that belongs to the people, rather than to the Government itself".

Likewise, Jhonatan Fetecua Ortiz, member of Insurlente collective, tells us: "This Velatón was convened through the Juventudes de Madrid platform. Several groups came together to join this initiative, we felt the obligation to be present at this event. Many people are not informed, especially in the villages, therefore this is an exercise to raise awareness of this problem. The people must know. In Madrid we also have an organization, we work from the agricultural, legal, artistic and above all from the heart, today it was them, tomorrow it could be any of us ".

These initiatives at the national level show, from different fields, these realities, not only with the discourse and the sit-down, but with artistic and cultural manifestations that were part of this great initiative to fight against such outrageous events.

Several cities around the world also joined these demonstrations, such as Paris and Berlin:

In Paris, diversity and love for life and the protection of human rights and politics come together. In unison, we demand that the Colombian authorities protect life! # We Are Killing @JuanManSantos @IvanDuque @FiscaliaCol fulfill their constitutional duty. Europe vigilant. pic.twitter.com/pPJa7eITYs

– Monica Arias F (@monniarias) July 6, 2018

In Berlin, the candle has already started for our leaders! More than 100 people gathered in front of the Colombian Consulate #NosEstanMantando pic.twitter.com/psLi3vqxNc

– Santa Frita (@JoanImitola) July 6, 2018

LatinAmerican Post | Amaranta Úrsula

Translated from "Colombia: Los pueblos y municipios también se manifiestan contra los asesinatos de líderes sociales"