Citizens and officials of Caicedo municipality marched to not forget the fallen, 16 years after the kidnapping and the death of former governor Guillermo Gaviria Correa and his peace adviser, Gilberto Echeverri Mejía.

The inhabitants of Caicedo started a march on Saturday from the Vaho bridge at the entrance of the municipality, where a commemorative plaque was placed (May 5, 2003) that marked the kidnapping and subsequent death of Guillermo Gaviria Correa, former governor of Antioquia and Gilberto Echeverri, Peace adviser of his office.

After the march and arriving at the main park, the inhabitants and spectators were able to write a message of peace in a book next to the memory mural with photographs of the direct victims that the armed conflict has left in this municipality. In addition, there were samples of traditional dances and reading of some messages from children who cultivate the culture of Nonviolence.

 "Every year we commemorate the memory and solidarity with the victims, we remember the events that have marked the history of our municipality and we raise our voices to demand non-repetition and violence does not return," said Senovia Serna, coordinator of the victims' table in Caicedo and also a victim of displacement 20 years ago.

Also, Wilson Córdoba, director of the Victims Unit in Antioquia said that with this day, "we remember a leader, a man who with his initiatives gave us an example of life as a Colombian, as was the former governor Guillermo Gaviria”.

Cordoba also said that "in addition to the commemoration of the memory and solidarity with the victims of this municipality, we are making a presence with collaborators of the entity, who will provide a personalized service to the population that has been affected by the violence so that they know in what way is your Integral Repair case".

The event ended with the Services Fair, in which six institutions provided advice to the population on loans for housing and education at a low interest rate (benefit to which they are entitled to be included in the single registry of victims), and the savings banks. family compensation Comfama and Comfenalco advised on recreational programs and housing acquisition, among others.

First municipality "Nonviolent"

Since the end of 90s, the armed conflict in the western region of Antioquia, where Caicedo is located, was exacerbated by violent actions from the Farc front 34 and by 2002 the population was very affected by robberies of loaded trucks of coffee and restriction to market agricultural products.

However, the response of the community was always peaceful civil resistance, which helped to erect Caicedo as the first Nonviolent municipality. Its inhabitants mobilized to accompany the peasants and that collective initiative was supported by the then governor of Antioquia, Guillermo Gaviria, who materialized the activism and philosophy of Nonviolence in the Congruent Peace Plan of Antioquia, in which the resistance was promoted civil society, dialogue, the peaceful solution of conflicts and respect for Human Rights to achieve peace.

(FIN SMC / AMA / LMY)