Colombia: death of senator and political figure Piedad Cordoba
It was President Petro who announced the death of Colombian senator Piedad Córdoba, a close ally of the Latin American left, on Saturday at the age of 68 in her hometown of Medellín.
Colombia: Senator Piedad Córdoba in March 2010 ©Reuters
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A lawyer by profession, Piedad Cordoba helped free
several FARC hostages
.
Among other things, she participated in the negotiations for
the release in May 2012 of France 24 journalist
Roméo Langlois
,
detained by the FARC for a month
.
lClose to the left and to the Venezuelan Hugo Chavez, also a mediator with the FARC, she has also been in the crosshairs of the right-wing powers for her alleged links with the guerrillas of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).
An investigation was opened against her for treason to the homeland
in April 2010. She was then dismissed from her position as senator and disqualified from any public function, for having "exceeded" her functions as mediator between the government and the former guerrillas. , although a high court later restored his political rights.
The Supreme Court was still investigating her for her alleged links to the former FARC guerrilla.
Read alsoColombia: Ingrid Betancourt denounces the troubled role of a female politician in her release
Colombia, 2012 archive: Piedad Cordoba, mediator with the FARC for the release of hostages, is alongside Commander Jairo in Caqueta: she was then on a mission for the release of France 24 journalist Roméo Langlois.
AFP - LUIS ACOSTA
Born in 1955 in Medellin, she was active in the Colombian Liberal Party and was elected to the municipal council of her city in 1988, then to the Senate in 1994. Since then, she has had a long career as a deputy and senator.
She was even briefly a presidential candidate in 2017 before joining the left-wing bloc of the Historic Pact.
Cordoba foot was a woman worn by a time and a society.
All of my life was born from a more democratic society.
His heart and his mind do not resist the pressure of an anacronic society, which applauds the adjustments of young people, which odiaba el dialogo y la paz,…
— Gustavo Petro (@petrogustavo) January 20, 2024
According to press reports, Piedad Cordoba was also under investigation for "alleged unauthorized contacts" with detained and extradited drug traffickers to solicit their support for Petro during the election campaign that brought him to the presidency.
In May 2022, Córdoba was detained for a day in Honduras for failing to declare $68,000 in cash as she prepared to leave the country.
The lawyer entered a plea in her defense and her arrest was revoked a few days later.
In early 2023, his brother, Álvaro Córdoba, was extradited to the United States after being wanted on drug trafficking charges, accused of coordinating drug shipments between a Colombian guerrilla and a Mexican cartel.
“
No one knows that my sister is a leader of the Latin American left, a situation that I cannot separate from my case (...) in reality, the one they are looking for is my sister,”
he said. then assured the brother of Córdoba.
(with AFP)
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