María Alejandra Ramírez Barrera, daughter of Alexander Ramírez Peralta killed 15 years ago by Farc's front 13, revealed for the first time that she, her mother, and brothers forgive the perpetrators. In an interview with La Nación, she recounted the details of the crime on April 15, 2011, in La Argentina, Huila, and called to stop the war in Colombia.
On April 15, 2011, a hitman sent by Farc's front 13 killed Alexander Ramírez Peralta, manager of La Argentina Hospital in Huila. According to his daughter María Alejandra Ramírez Barrera, then 15, the attacker arrived at the family home that Friday night pretending to be from the countryside. Ramírez Peralta answered the door at her insistence and was shot twice, one fatal, dying instantly.
The family, including the 37-year-old mother and brothers Juan Nicolás (12) and Juan José (6), moved to Garzón for safety. Fiscalía investigations confirmed front 13 of Farc's responsibility, with three people captured and convicted, though the motive remains unknown. A rumor circulated of rejected extortion over a new hospital construction, but it was never corroborated.
Fifteen years later, María Alejandra, now a lawyer, and her family announce their forgiveness. "With hate, rage, and resentment we weren't going to get anywhere," she said. Her process began studying the 2016 peace accord and hearing an ex-Farc recruit at a congress, realizing reconciliation overcomes resentment.
Ramírez respects victims who do not forgive and criticizes the lack of implementation of the peace accord, allowing violence to resurge. "Let's not stop believing in peace," she urges Huilenses, stressing it is everyone's commitment.
