The Office of the Attorney General of Colombia reported 614 cases of femicide in 2022. In April 2023, social leader Lilia Patricia Cardozo Cipamocha almost became another victim. She was walking through Santander Park in Tunja, Boyacá Department, on April 10 when at attacker threw acid on her, causing injuries to her face and chest. This attack occurred just five days after a man approached her while she was walking home, tried to attack her with a knife, and threatened to kill her.
Patricia Cardozo is the director of the Boyacense Feminist Platform (Plataforma Feminista Boyacense), an organization working to end domestic abuse, gender violence, and discrimination, including rescuing victims from the hands of abusers. She has been under threat since 2022.
In addition to urging that authorities investigate the threat (April 5) and attack (April 10), we are calling for ordination between the National Protection Unit (UNP) and the municipal government of Tujna to implement a protection scheme for Lilia Patricia Cardozo Cipamocha, in strict accordance with her wishes.