Piedad Cordoba, an outspoken leftist who straddled Colombia's ideological divide, dies at age 68
ABC News
Piedad Córdoba, an outspoken Colombian lawmaker who for decades championed the rights of her fellow Afro-Colombians while undertaking huge risks as a go-between to leftist rebel groups, has died
BOGOTA, Colombia -- Piedad Córdoba, an outspoken Colombian lawmaker who for decades championed the rights of her fellow Afro-Colombians while undertaking huge risks as a go-between to leftist rebel groups, has died. She was 68.
The senator's death was confirmed Saturday by President Gustavo Petro, who praised Córdoba as a true liberal who “fought all her mature life for a more democratic society.”
No cause of death was given but Colombian media reported she was found dead Saturday by her bodyguards at her home in Medellin from an apparent heart attack.
Known throughout Colombia for her colorful turbans evoking her African heritage, Córdoba stood out as a leftist stalwart in one of Latin America's most conservative countries and paid dearly for her vociferous defense of some of the country's most dispossessed.
Whether kidnapped by right-wing paramilitary groups, or expelled from Congress for promoting the country's last remaining rebel army, Córdoba never shied away from conflict and frequently bounced back from adversity in remarkable ways. A trusted ally of the late Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, Córdoba played a key behind-the-scenes role in bringing leaders of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, to the negotiating table that resulted in a historic 2016 peace deal ending a half century of guerrilla conflict.
