The blood of civil rights defenders continues to be shed in Latin America. Following the recent murder of Brazilian activist Marielle Franco, who fought against violence in the favelas, another woman has been assassinated: Colombian campesina leader María Magdalena Cruz Rojas.

No more coca in the fields

The woman was killed on 30 March by two unidentified hooded hitmen, in front of her son and husband, while she was on her farm in the municipality of Mapiripán, in the department of Meta. Cruz Rojas led the Movement for Crop Substitution of Mapiripán, which calls for the replacement of coca cultivation with alternative crops.

On the side of the campesinos

Cruz Rojas fought in defence of campesinos and is remembered as "an tireless fighter when it came to improving the wellbeing of the local community", according to a statement by the growers' organisation Coordinadora Nacional de Cultivadores de Coca, Amapola y Marihuana (Coccam).

Colombia without peace

Defending human rights and the environment is increasingly dangerous in Colombia. During 2017, as many as 106 activists were assassinated, according to the report published by the human rights group Somos Defensores. Meanwhile, twenty-two murders have been recorded since the start of the year, according to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (Iachr). In a statement, the Iachr urged the Colombian government to "adopt urgent measures to protect those who defend human rights in the country and to carry out thorough investigations".

In no man's land

The Iachr also noted that the victims often "find themselves in a situation of particular vulnerability, as they live in remote areas where armed conflicts have historically been most intense". Among these areas is the municipality of Mapiripán, where Cruz Rojas lived, a region marked for years by armed clashes between guerrillas and paramilitary groups.