that succeeded paramilitarism. Point 5 also defined the position regarding reparations for the victims of the armed conflict. In this context, victims of the armed conflict demanded guarantees of access to justice, as well as guarantees of the right to truth and reparation and, especially, of non-repetition of abuses such as forced displacement and sexual violence, for Indigenous, Afrodescendant and peasant farmer communities at risk. These demands had yet to be met, and the long-term viability of the Peace Agreement was threatened due to the perpetrators of crimes under international law, including war crimes, crimes against humanity and human rights abuses not being brought to justice. In April Legislative Act No.1 of 2017 was adopted, to ensure Congress would pass legislation implementing Point 5 of the Peace Agreement. One of its provisions provided for the separate – and privileged – treatment of state agents before the law, to the detriment of the rights of victims of crimes by the state in the context of the armed conflict. The law also provided for the possibility that the state would not pursue criminal prosecutions in certain cases – although how this would be implemented was not clear – potentially breaching the obligation of the state to investigate, prosecute and punish grave violations of human rights, undermining the rights of victims to truth and full reparation. On 27 November, Congress approved the Special Jurisdiction for Peace. POLICE AND SECURITY FORCES There were allegations of deliberate killings by state forces and allegations of excessive use of force by the Mobile Anti-Riot Squad (ESMAD) during protests in Chocó, Valle del Cauca, Cauca and Catatumbo. Inhabitants of Buenaventura on the Pacific coast reported police repression of peaceful demonstrations which were part of the “Civic Strike” declared on 16 May to demand that the Colombian government guarantee economic, social and cultural rights and the right of the city’s inhabitants to participate in the implementation of the Peace Agreement Amnesty International Report 2017/18 with the FARC. Police, army and navy officers were present in the area. Protesters reported that tear gas was used against peaceful demonstrators. The Ombudsperson reported that approximately 205 children as well as 10 pregnant women and 19 elderly people suffered health complications as a result. In total, health problems as a result of exposure to tear gas were reported by 313 people, and 16 people sustained gunshot injuries or trauma from blunt objects. The “Civic Strike” ended on 7 June. One Indigenous man, Felipe Castro Basto, was reported to have died in the municipality of Corinto, in the North of Cauca, when ESMAD opened fire on a demonstration by 200 Indigenous people. The Association of Community Councils Mira, Nulpe and Mataje (Asominuma) reported that, on 5 October, security forces killed nine peasant farmers by indiscriminately firing at a peaceful demonstration in Tumaco (Nariño). HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS Human rights defenders continued to be the victims of threats and targeted killings. The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights reported that at least 105 human rights defenders were killed in Colombia during the year. There was continuing concern over the increase in the number of attacks against defenders, especially community leaders; defenders of land, territory and the environment; and those campaigning in favour of the signing of the Final Agreement with the FARC. There continued to be an alarming rate of attacks against defenders of the rights of Indigenous and Afro-descendant people, peasant farmers and women, calling into question the implementation of the Peace Agreement. According to the organization Somos Defensores, the number of killings of defenders increased by 31% in the first half of the year compared to the same period in 2016. The killings of women exercising any kind of leadership role increased compared to 2016, with seven such killings occurring in the first six months of 2017.  133