The Church in Colombia expresses its solidarity with the families of the victims found in common grave

The Catholic Church sympathized with the families of the eight social and religious leaders killed and whose bodies were found in a common grave in the Colombian department of Guaviare, and indicated that this “infamous act” damages the peace of the region.

On Tuesday, July 1, the Prosecutor’s Office reported the discovery of a common grave in the rural area of ​​the municipality of Calamar, with the remains of eight people, including social leaders and evangelical communities.

In a joint statementthe Delegation for Church-State Relations of the Episcopal Conference of Colombia and the Diocese of San José del Guaviare, expressed that this murder “represents a serious affectation to the social life and peace of the region.”

“We call on armed actors to look for paths of peace, to improve the humanitarian situation, the decalmation of the conflict in the region and the safeguard of the life of the communities that continue to suffer the scourge of war,” they said in their statement dated July 2.

They also transmitted their solidarity “with the families of the victims, with the communities of faith and with the inhabitants of Guaviare in these difficult moments. We reaffirm our commitment to the defense of life, human dignity, justice, peace as a gift of God and the search for Colombia’s reconciliation.”

According to the Prosecutor’s Officetwo of these people were cited on April 4 by the Armando Ríos Front, of the Disidences of the FARC, and three days later the other six victims “In order to be ‘interrogated’ about the possible presence or creation” of a cell of the National Liberation Army (ELN) in the area were summoned.

“Days later, the eight people would have been transferred to an abandoned property,” he said.

The Prosecutor’s Office said that, according to the investigations, “the victimizers apparently received the order from the circle of confidence of Iván Bite Bite to avoid the possible conformation of an ELN cell”, which disputes the control of the region.

Néstor Vera Fernández, aka Iván Bite, leads the central General Staff, one of the armed groups known as the dissidents of the FARC, who have been given this denomination for not having accepted the peace agreement signed in 2016 the Colombian State and the former guerrillas.