In May 2026, The Colombian Commission of Jurists (CCJ) highlighted the importance of Special Jurisdiction for Peace’s (JEP) ruling in the Macro-Case 03, Caribbean Region sub-case, concerning extrajudicial executions. The ruling concluded that, between January 2002 and July 2005, the Popa Battalion killed and forcibly disappeared 135 people, who were then falsely presented as killed in...
Second Follow-up Report on Recommendations: Situation of human rights defenders and social leaders in Colombia. This report published by Indepaz within the framework of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), assesses progress since the 2016 Peace Agreement and concludes that serious structural problems persist in the protection of these groups, despite some institutional advances....
Hernando Chindoy, indigenous leader and human rights defender: “What shaped my path was the violence we suffered as a people”. Hernando Chindoy, an Indigenous leader from the Inga people, explains how his lifelong commitment to human rights and environmental defence was shaped by the violence, discrimination, and cultural repression experienced by his community. As a...
Wave of violence in Buenaventura leaves 23 dead and raises alert about war between groups. There has been a sharp escalation of violence in Buenaventura, Colombia, where at least 23 people were killed between February and March 2026, most of them young men aged 17 to 30. Prompting a warning from the Ombudsman’s Office about...
The UN says that Petro’s government has failed to protect human rights defenders. A UN report has warned that the government of Gustavo Petro has failed to curb violence against human rights defenders in Colombia despite its initial commitments, noting that at least 410 social leaders were killed between 2022 and 2025, with a surge...
On 8 March2026, Colombia held congressional elections, the first major vote of the year ahead of the presidential election at the end of May 2026, with a second round in June if necessary. In the Senate, the left-wing party of President Gustavo Petro, the Pacto Historico (Historic Pact), emerged as the largest political force, winning 25 of the 103 seats. The second-largest party was the Centro Democratico (Democratic Centre), the party founded by a former...
ABColombia expresses its profound concern regarding the serious humanitarian situation that has been unfolding in the rural area of Aracataca-Magdalena with reports of armed confrontations between the Clan del Golfo and the Autodefensas Conquistadoras de la Sierra Nevada (ASCN). The Arhuaco Indigenous community in the Sierra Neva de Santa Marta, Colombia, are caught in the middle of the crossfire. On 6 March 2026, armed clashes between the Clan del Golfo and the Autodefensas Conquistadoras de la Sierra Nevada in rural areas of Aracataca have resulted in the death of an indigenous person from Serankwa and another...
ABColombia expresses its profound concern regarding the threats and statements posted on social media stigmatizing the work of CINEP on 4 March 2026, putting them and the communities they accompany at risk. Of grave concern is the context in which these statements were issued, as Chocó sees a resurgence of armed violence against the civilian population. This has increased fear and concern for those who...
On 3 February 2026, there was a meeting between President Gustavo Petro and President Donald Trump in the White House. Just one month before the Trump administration had removed former Venezuelan President, Nicolás Maduro and his family from Venezuela. Trump in a press interview, following the action involving the former Venezuelan President, stated that Colombian...
In 12 days on Sunday 8 March 2026, Colombia will hold Congressional Elections. There are considerable concerns for the safety of voters and because of the pressure that armed groups could bring to bear on voters in areas of complex conflict. As a result, for the second time in its history, the European Union...
