LatinNews Daily - 16 October 2026

*Colombia’s President Abelardo de la Espriella has announced that his government will make cuts to the national protection unit (UNP), which provides bodyguard services for people deemed to be at risk of assassination. De la Espriella said that the UNP’s mission has been “distorted” and that “anyone can upload a video saying that they’ve been threatened, and the State has to come running to offer them protection”. He said that “the public finances are going through their worst moment”, necessitating a reform of the UNP, but insisted that those in real need of protection would continue to receive it “regardless of if they didn’t vote for me”. Social leaders, who are a key recipient of UNP protection, continue to face extremely high levels of violence. According to the Colombian NGO Indepaz, 121 social leaders have been killed so far in 2026, while 187 were murdered in 2025 and 173 in 2024. The international NGO Global Witness ranked Colombia as the world’s most dangerous country for environmental activists for the fourth consecutive year in 2025, with 39 murders.

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