CSW calls for thorough investigation into disappearance of Roman Catholic priest

CSW is calling on the Colombian government to urgently conduct a full and co-ordinated investigation into the disappearance of a Roman Catholic Priest who was last seen on 17 June.

Father Carlos Saúl Jaimes Guerrero, a 30-year-old priest belonging to the Province of Our Lady of Grace of the Order of Saint Augustine in Colombia, was travelling from the Hacienda Casacoima – a space for worship and religious outreach under his pastoral care – to a nearby stream in the rural area of Viotá Municipality, Cundinamarca Department, where he reportedly had an appointment, however he never arrived.

His vehicle was later found abandoned, with the engine still running, near a waterway in the rural area of La Unión. There were no visible signs of violence, robbery or forced entry. He has not been seen since.

In a video shared publicly on 21 June, Father Jaimes Guerrero’s mother Ana Mary Guerrero issued an emotional plea for information on her son’s whereabouts, stating: ‘Please send us news about him, contact the family. I’m desperate, I know nothing about him. Please, I need him returned safe and sound.’

CSW sources report that the Urgent Search Mechanism (Mecanismo de Búsqueda Urgente –MBU) of the Attorney General’s Office, an immediate response protocol designed for victims of disappearance has been activated and local authorities in Viotá, have offered a reward of 10 million Colombian pesos (approximately £1,800 GBP) for credible information leading to the discovery of the priest’s whereabouts.

Father Jaimes Guerrero’s disappearance follows that of eight religious and social leaders who never returned from meetings to which they were summoned by an illegal armed group operating in Calamar Municipality, Guaviare Department, on 4 and 5 April. On 1 July the bodies of all eight individuals were discovered in a mass grave in a rural part of the municipality.

Religious leaders who carry out their work in areas under the control of illegal armed and criminal groups are at risk. However, despite thousands of attacks that have been recorded against religious leaders throughout Colombia’s decades-long internal conflict, in 2023 the Colombian government amended Decree 1066 of 2015 to remove religious leaders from receiving special protections on an official list of categories of particularly vulnerable populations.

CSW’s Director of Advocacy Anna Lee Stangl said: ‘We urge the Colombian government to strengthen its efforts to ensure a coordinated, prompt and effective response from institutions at every level to ensure Father Jaimes Guerrero’s swift and safe return. We insist upon the urgent need for the government to remember its duty to prevent, protect and investigate any targeting of religious and social leaders. We call on the government to reinstate religious leaders under Decree 1066, to ensure their access to government protection programs and security mechanisms.’