The Office of the Ombudsman warns again about the increase in violence in Arauca

The beginning of the year for the department of Arauca has been filled by violence and constant clashes between armed groups, the civilian community has been left in the midst of fire and completely exposed to any event. The Ombudsman's Office again warned of the risk faced by the population in the capital of this department, urging the authorities to take timely measures aimed at guaranteeing the rights of the citizens concerned.

The Office of the Ombudsman highlighted that the population of communes 1, 2, 3 and 5 is totally exposed by the armed actions of illegal groups, a situation that has generated concern and seeks to provide different mechanisms to protect citizens, since there have already been reports of confinement and harassment against it. society.

Likewise, the said entity pointed out that there is a constant dynamic with regard to the crime of enforced disappearance, in areas near the border between Colombia and the neighboring country of Venezuela, in addition to this, it is reported that channels of communication and care have already been opened for the family of Carlos César Mejía, a citizen who disappeared on March 1 in the Bocas del Arauca sector, as noted by the Ombudsman's Office.

It should be noted that the previous week the Ombudsman's Office accompanied various leaders and presidents of community action boards in this municipality, in order to clarify all public order situations that were affecting communities in the municipality of Puerto Rondón and Tame, in the same way, the National Army has strengthened its operations to deliver strong blows; both against the ELN and the residual groups of the FARC, as a result of these, he took alias 'Mono Canas' in recent days, accused of being alleged leader of the front Adonay Ardila Pinilla of the ELN.

This situation had already been alerted in 2021, since around March the Office of the Ombudsman indicated that nearly 15,000 people were at risk in the department, especially in the communes already mentioned above, this, considering that on the banks of the Arauca River there was a steady increase in presence of FARC dissidents and men attached to the ELN, in this case, territorial disputes directly violated International Humanitarian Law and the guarantees of security of the civilian population.

According to the National Radio of Colombia, the Office of the Ombudsman indicated in early 2021 that the main social niches affected concerned minors and adolescents, in addition to the Venezuelan migrant population that was identified by systematic stigmatization, where reference was made to which social sector traded and consumed various illicit substances, in addition to participating in crimes in the area. Similarly, conditions for social, political and environmental leaders were constantly precarious.

In the context of the recent armed strike organized by the ELN guerrillas, municipalities such as Fortul, Tame and Arauca were besieged by the presence of this illegal group, as the men patrolled freely through the main streets of these jurisdictions, while people remained in constant fear inside their homes, although the National Government, Minister of the Interior Daniel Palacios, indicated that there was no stoppage in Colombia, the violent actions of the ELN proved quite the opposite.

Both the forced disappearance, the extortive kidnapping and the assassinations of social leaders, have become one of the main tools of threat by this guerrilla, in addition to this, there is a constant war that has left dozens of dead since the beginning of the year. The fighting between the ELN and the FARC dissidents not only takes place in Colombia, but also in Venezuela.

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