"In the department of Putumayo, in the southwest of Colombia, anyone, including armed groups, knows where the most well-known journalists live. It is enough to tell a cab driver the name of one of the journalists to arrive, in a matter of minutes, at the doors of their homes, which are almost always also their place of work.
This is the level of exposure and danger to which journalists are subjected just now that the two armed groups operating in the department, the Bolivarian Commandos of the Border and the dissidents of the Carolina Ramírez front. They are fighting a battle that has left countless dead and this battle extends to journalists under the guise of threats. All this while both illegal groups claim to be part of the total peace negotiations with the Government of Gustavo Petro.
The Foundation for Press Freedom (FLIP, by its Spanish acronym) has documented that, in this department in particular, violence against journalists has worsened. FLIP alerts the president and his peace commissioner, Danilo Rueda, to protect journalists. They also demand that the armed forces, within the framework of the protocols of the bilateral ceasefires, do not intimidate them and allow them to continue doing their work."
