Two members of the People’s Alternative Revolutionary Force (FARC) political party, which formed under the terms of the 2016 peace agreement, received death threats from paramilitary group the Gaitanista Self-Defence Forces (AGC) in Medellin on 10 January.
One party member, Aracely Cañaveral, was given a pamphlet featuring her name and accusations of terrorism that meant she was a ‘military objective as of this moment and for always’. The pamphlet also contained details of her daily routine and threatened anyone who she had contact with.
Aracely is a political activist and community organiser. She was a trade unionist for 28 years, during which time she campaigned for workers’ health benefits and human rights. She was formerly on the Antioquia directorate of the CUT federation, Colombia’s version of the TUC. She has since retired.
Another party organiser, Wilson López, found a note in his home which said he was a military target for being an ‘active political militant of the FARC’.
The FARC released a statement denouncing the threats. Since the peace agreement was signed in November 2016, 37 FARC members and 13 of their close relatives have been murdered.