On 22 January, 33-year-old José Olmedo Obando, a community leader of the New Hope Afro Commentary Council (Consejo Comentario Afro Nueva Esperanza), was murdered in Ipiales, department of Nariño.
José’s murder follows repeated warnings by community leaders in Nariño of a systematic campaign of violence against social leaders and political activists. The region continues to experience high levels of political violence, which have exacerbated since the signing of the 2016 peace agreement to end Colombia’s long-running armed conflict.
Around 140 people were murdered for political activity in 2017. So far in 2018, at least eight have been killed. African-Colombian and indigenous communities have been particularly affected.