Jhon Montero was a peasant and community leader and a member of the Asociación de Padres de Familia de la Institución Educativa de Vereda Sinaí (Association of Family members of the Educational Institute of vereda Sinaí) in Argelia, Cauca.
He took part by many community development projects and was part of a campaign to distribute food kits to the families of students affected by COVID.
On 31 August, 2020, Jhon was grabbed and forced into a car by armed men in the village of Desiderio Zapata. He was then taken to the village of La Leona where he was shot dead. His body was then dumped in the neighbouring village of El Cedro.
Four human rights defenders were killed in Colombia on this day. The most vulnerable targets are community leaders and former members of the FARC who have signed the Peace Agreement. The government has attributed the wave of killings across the country to a struggle for control of the drug trade by members of dissident paramilitary groups, especially in areas from which the FARC has withdrawn.
