Colombian activists face 'extermination' by criminal gangs

Nearly two years after the signing of a historic peace agreement, violence in the country continues

Joe Parkin Daniels in Bogotá

@joeparkdan
Thu 23 Aug 2018 03.00 EDT

Enrique Fernández cannot remember the last night he slept peacefully.

He is tall and heavyset, and does not look like someone who scares easily, but as he sits in his humble rented home in western Colombia, his eyes dart nervously from left to right, scanning for any threat.

Any moment could be his last, he says.

When a teenaged ice-cream vendor approaches the front door Fernández scurries anxiously to a back room, convinced the youth is helping set up an attempt on his life.

It is not paranoia. Fernández – a leader of the Nasa indigenous tribe and an outspoken defender of the environment – has had a price on his head for months.

More:
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/aug/23/colombian-activists-face-extermination-by-criminal-gangs