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A 25-year-old Colombian journalist, Mateo Perez Rueda has been found dead in a northwestern region controlled by guerrilla fighters and drug traffickers, in what a press freedom organisation described as murder.
Rueda had been missing since Tuesday after travelling to report on violence in a rural area about five hours north of Medellin ahead of the May 31 elections.
“We regret and condemn the murder of Mateo Perez Rueda,” the Foundation for Press Freedom wrote on X.
Dissident members of the now-defunct Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, who rejected the 2016 peace agreement with the Colombian government, operate in the area where the journalist’s body was discovered.
Credit: Cronica del Quindio
Members of the Gulf Clan, Colombia’s largest drug trafficking cartel, are also active in the region.
FLIP said Perez, who managed the online news platform El Confidente de Yarumal, served as “a vital voice for the local community.”
His reporting largely focused on crime, security, politics and corruption.
“For this reason, Mateo faced legal pressure (…) for his investigations into illicit economies linked to armed groups,” the organisation stated.
According to FLIP, the location where his body was found remains a contested area where FARC dissidents and the Gulf Clan continue to battle for control.
President Gustavo Petro suspended peace negotiations with the FARC dissident faction led by rebel commander Calarca on April 21.
However, the Colombian government continues talks with the Gulf Clan, which the United States classifies as a terrorist organisation.
Colombia has witnessed an increase in guerrilla violence ahead of this month’s elections.
FLIP stated that at least 170 journalists have been killed in Colombia since 1977.
