Colombian senator dies 2 months after being shot by assassin
Miguel Uribe Turbay. | Credit: LuigiVenegas, Original uploader (2019), CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
By David Ramos
Colombian Sen. Miguel Uribe Turbay died Monday morning, Aug. 11, just over two months after being shot by a hitman, his wife, María Claudia Tarazona, confirmed. The politician was hospitalized at the Santa Fe Foundation Hospital in Bogotá.
'You will always be the love of my life. Thank you for a life full of love, thank you for being a father to the girls, the best father to Alejandro. I ask God to show me the way to learn to live without you,' Tarazona wrote on Instagram early this morning.
Born on Jan. 28, 1986, in Bogotá, Colombia, Uribe Turbay was the son of businessman Miguel Uribe and journalist Diana Turbay, who was murdered in 1991 after being kidnapped by the order of Pablo Escobar, the head of the Medellín Cartel.
Uribe Turbay, whose family background is Maronite Catholic, held various public offices until he was elected to the country's Senate in 2022 as a candidate for the Democratic Center political party — led by former President Álvaro Uribe — and had strong prospects ahead of the 2026 presidential elections.
On June 7, as part of his campaign to get on the ballot, he participated in a political event in Fontibón on the west side of the Bogotá capital district where he was the victim of the attack that claimed his life early this morning after nearly two months in critical condition.
In addition to his wife, Uribe Turbay is survived by his young son, Alejandro, and three daughters from his wife's previous relationship.
Cardinal Rueda: It's a time to unite as a country
The archbishop of Bogotá and primate of Colombia, Cardinal Luis José Rueda Aparicio, urged the country to hold on to hope despite the pain caused by Uribe Turbay's death. 'Is not this the time to call on all Colombians to reject all forms of violence and walk together in hope. This is not a time for us to be divided, it is a time to unite,' he said.
In a video released by the Archdiocese of Bogotá, the cardinal also expressed his solidarity with the Uribe Turbay family and assured them that the Church is praying for the senator's eternal rest.
'I also invite all families in Colombia to pray. Let us pray for Colombia. Let us pray for the children. Let us pray for the youth. Let us pray for peace. And let us pray to God to give us a renewed heart and a new conscience so that we may be able to work for the unity of Colombia, reject all forms of violence, and be able to meet and dialogue together in the midst of conflict,' he said.
Father Ramón Zambrano, founder of the television channel Cristovisión, also expressed his condolences. 'May Miguel Uribe Turbay rest in peace. May he enjoy eternal life that the Lord grants to the just. May God bless and strengthen his wife and his entire family,' he wrote on X.
'May the blood of the martyrs be a seed of hope so that we may commit ourselves to forging a country where we don't turn our backs on God,' he added.
Colombia mourns
Other political leaders also expressed their condolences following the death of the Colombian senator. Former President Álvaro Uribe posted on X: 'Evil destroys everything; they have killed hope. May Miguel's struggle be a light that illuminates the right path for Colombia.'
Former Colombian President Iván Duque said that 'terrorism robbed us of a promising figure for Colombia and a leader of integrity and transparency… Colombia mourns but will not surrender to the criminals who snuffed out the life of an admirable young man.'
Carlos Galán, mayor of Bogotá and son of Luis Carlos Galán — a presidential candidate assassinated on the orders of drug kingpin Pablo Escobar in 1989 — recognized Uribe Turbay as 'a great human being, an honest and courageous leader, a politician with a true vocation for service.'
'His assassination should be a turning point for Colombia. We cannot accept violence in our country,' he added, calling for this crime to not go unpunished.
Colombian authorities have arrested members of the crime gang accused of organizing the assasination, which was carried out by a 15-year-old boy. --CNA
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