In the midst of the clashes between the Clan del Golfo and the National Liberation Army (ELN) for control of the territory, unions in the health sector have reported that medical personnel have been victims of kidnappings in order to provide care to the wounded. , the result of fighting between illegal groups.
This was announced by one of the hospital managers who was summoned to the conflict zone for what would be the formation of a medical team to care for those who were shot, as they anticipated that the situation would worsen, according to what they were informed.
The testimony was known by Semana, a medium that assured that for security reasons the man did not reveal his identity. According to his statements, there would be two auxiliaries who were detained by the Clan del Golfo, whose faces were covered and their vision was obscured in order to forcibly take them to the places where the wounded were located.
One of the cases allowed us to learn more about this fact when the professional indicated the testimony of one of the detainees. Apparently, the men took the woman by force, who in the midst of her fear and anguish asked that they not hurt her. The men would have assured her that they would not take her life, but they needed her medical knowledge.
Thus, they took her to a place she could not identify, where she found two injured young men. Although the woman mentioned that in the event of a serious situation it was necessary to go to a medical center, the men ignored the suggestion, which is why she had to perform a surgical procedure on the spot to remove an artifact from the leg of one of the wounded.
With the fear that invaded her, the woman told the professional that she constantly asked that they not hurt her, but apparently, the men were just waiting for the process to end, because after five hours of the intervention, they let her return to her home. Of course, after warning her that she could not tell the authorities about the event.
This testimony adds to the statements that Carlos Valdivieso, one of the spokespersons for the Antioquia Medical Association, delivered on the situation, in which he ensures that the professional teams do not have security guarantees to carry out their work, since they are intercepted when they leave of the hospitals. Given this, he noted the following:
“We register with great concern reports of some health professionals who have been victims, apparently of improper retention by illegal armed groups, in order to be forced to provide health services.”
Through a statement, the Attorney General’s Office called on the national government to provide security guarantees to the population of the rural area of the municipalities of Valdivia and Yarumal in Antioquia, after the increase in clashes between the Clan del Golfo and the ELN.
According to the document, the combats, of which there are already fatalities from the illegal groups, have been increasing in these two municipalities. To this is added that the situation of violence has brought with it other situations that also involve the population, since they have generated displacement of the inhabitants, shortages of basic necessities and medicines, and confinements.
Nearly 80 families residing in the villages and areas close to the municipalities would be the main ones affected by these events.
According to Javier Sarmiento, delegate attorney for Human Rights, the situation is not close to ending, since they have identified the expansion to other areas of northeastern Antioquia. “… it has been known of risks of displacement of the communities of Segovia and Remedios, due to disputes over territorial control and illegal rents between these organized armed groups.”
The Attorney General’s Office concluded by saying: “The Public Ministry calls on the government to protect his life and take urgent humanitarian care actions for the affected families and prevent this situation from continuing to spread to other areas of the department.” with Infobae