Contract killings and its impact in civil society: Avenues for monitoring and responding

Assassinations, or contract killings, have been largely used by criminal groups as a form of criminal governance: to exert territorial control and control of their illicit markets, targeted violence was commonly seen as the modus operandi by many groups. However, increasingly, the spill over of these gang turfs have affected victims from civil society. Individuals standing for political office, activists defending lands from corporate or criminal encroachment, and journalists uncovering unsavoury truths. The list of victims of contract killings is long and global. The panel will present Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime (GI-TOC)’s database, the Global Assassination Monitor, a unique database that monitors contract killings around the world. It will also discuss the current state of contract killings in the academic literature. The panel will finish with a practical recommendation of community-based responses on this widespread form of crime in Colombia.