Region Silent as 156 Colombian Human Rights Activists Killed in Last 14 Months

Colombia's Ombudsman has delivered a shocking report Friday revealing that 156 social leaders have been killed in the country in the last 14 months, EFE reported.

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The report titled "Violence and Threats against Social Leaders and Human Rights Defenders," penned by Carlos Alfonso Negret, adds that these events occurred between January 1, 2016 and March 1, 2017.

According to Negret, "one of the main causes of this phenomenon is the pretension of illegal armed groups to occupy the territory from which the FARC (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia) have withdrawn." As part of the 2016 peace agreement between the Colombian government and the left-wing guerrillas, the FARC are moving from rural territories to U.N.-sponsored "demobilization zones" where their disarmament is being overseen.

The objective of these groups is to "control the illegal economies that have been the fuel" of the Colombia's five decade-long armed conflict, the Colombian official added.

In addition to those killed, there were also five forced disappearances and another 33 reported attacks on activists. The attacks by armed groups, including paramilitaries, took place in 23 of the country's 32 departments, the report outlines.

The Indigenous territory of Cauca was the area most impacted by the violence, accounting for 30 percent of the murders.

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Social movements and human rights activists have been calling on Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos to do more to address paramilitary violence targeting social and left-wing leaders.

Also on Friday, Indigenous movements in Cauca mobilized thousands along the Pan American highway to draw attention to the number of people killed by right-wing paramilitaries, who have been blamed for a majority of the human rights abuses in the war that has claimed the lives 220,000 people and displaced millions.

The report comes as regional leaders, including Santos, continue to draw their attention to Venezuela's political and economic woes.

On Mar. 28, 18 countries called for a meeting of Organization of American States Permanent Council to address the situation of Venezuela, including claims of human rights abuses from OAS head and opposition ally, Luis Almagro.

While Almagro once again failed to persuade OAS members to invoke the bloc's so-called "Democratic Charter" — which would effectively suspend Venezuela from the organization — another meeting has been called for Apr. 3 in the wake of the controversial Venezuela Supreme Court ruling that would have allowed the court to approve measures under the purview of the country's National Assembly.

The ruling, which acknowledged that this constitutionally approved measure would only be in place as long as the National Assembly continued to be "in contempt" of the country's laws, has since been overturned after protests from Venezuela's attorney general and Venezuelan President, Nicolas Maduro.