On Thursday, April 13 at 19:30 GMT:
Colombia topped the list of human rights defenders killed in 2022, according to the final report of the rights group Front Line Defenders.
The murders of 186 Colombian human rights activists make up 46 percent of the global total reported last year and highlighted a worrying trend of increasing violence against those committed to defending human, environmental and indigenous rights. Colombian activists face threats and harassment from a range of actors, including state security forces, armed groups and criminal organizations.
Latin America has long been a dangerous region for human rights defenders, with many facing threats for their work on land rights and environmental protection. According to Front Line Defenders, Latin America was responsible for 80 percent of the reported killings of human rights defenders in the world.
Despite efforts to improve the protection of human rights defenders, impunity remains a major challenge, and very few of these murders lead to investigations or convictions.
In this episode of The Stream, we look at the threats facing Colombian human rights defenders and what needs to be done to protect them.
In this episode of The Stream we speak with:
Laura Bonnilla, @LauraJ Bonilla
Deputy Director, PARES
Ingo Alexander, @Inigo_Alexander
Journalist
Sarah de Roure, @sarahderoure
Head protection, Front Line Defenders