Norberto Cadavid Ramírez, resident in San Bartolomé, tenant and worker of the Morro de Chibusque farm, located between El Islote and La Vegueta, has reported to La Voz that he has suffered "death threats" from a hunter who goes to the hunting training field located around the farm.
The citizen has been denouncing a situation that is becoming "unsustainable" for him for approximately "five years": the loss of his livestock during hunting activities.
Norberto's daily life is truncated by problems with the hunters who prowl around the farm, often at times when he is "not at home." The chickens and hens he has are in danger when the hunting dogs appear, who end up killing the animals. He says he has lost around a hundred hens, and that the dogs even enter the house. "They are English hens and each one costs me almost 20 euros," he said about the economic losses involved.
When Norberto demands that the hunters stop entering the private land, since "it is not a hunting area," the "ordeal" begins. "You are garbage, the farm is not yours, go far away from here," are some of the comments he had to face on one of the occasions, when he was approached by a group of three armed hunters with four dogs.
According to his testimony, the beaters not only reproach him, but also break the security measures that the worker puts in place to prevent them from accessing his land. "They have broken the padlock, fencing and the signs that I had put up to prevent them from entering," he pointed out.
"You are garbage, the farm is not yours, go far away from here"
A "violent" verbal and physical assault
One of the most "violent" events he had to experience occurred on April 7, 2021, when he was working on the farm. According to the complaint filed by Cadavid, a hunter approached with his vehicle and dogs to carry out his hunting work in the vicinity of the house. At that moment, the worker made it clear to the defendant that he "could not be there."
A response that the hunter "did not like very much" and for which the attempt of physical and psychological aggression began. "He appeared with a stick with an iron tip in his hand and was willing to attack me," he revealed. Cadavid ended up injured in the hand by a blow that the hunter gave him with the stick, when he was about to record what happened with his mobile phone. Immediately afterwards, the aggression continued, in which the defendant retreated and took some stones and tried to throw them at Norberto, although he managed to dodge them.
A few minutes later, Norberto managed to get closer to the house, but was still being chased by the hunter. "Damn it, I'm going to kill him today no matter what, today is the day, tonight I'm going to come and set fire to the house," he shouted while approaching the plaintiff with his vehicle. According to Norberto, these were other words spoken by the hunter: "It would be good to make him disappear and kill him, you son of a bitch Colombian."
About 20 or 30 minutes later, the hunter's son appeared, who was also carrying a stick. "I had to lock myself in the farm, I feared for my life," he confessed. From inside the house, the plaintiff observed how they threw stones at two of the windows.
"I'm going to kill him no matter what, today is the day, tonight I'm going to come and set fire to the house"
During the trial held on June 29 of that same year, the defendant denied the aggression, arguing that he did not hit the mobile phone with the stick and that he did not know if Norberto was recording the incident. In addition, he stated that he had followed the worker because he was "nervous," that he was carrying the metal stick "only to lean on," and that he did not cause any damage to the windows of the farm.
He continued to maintain this statement despite the showing of the photographs with the damages provided by the plaintiff. The evidence brought by Norberto consisted of three files that were reproduced during the trial. An audio in which the worker was heard telling him that "it was a private property" and images of what happened during the confrontation.
According to the sentence to which La Voz has had access, Norberto called a couple of friends to come to the place. During the oral hearing, a witness highlighted that the defendant was "very upset and became "very aggressive." In addition, she assured that the hunter uttered racist insults to Norberto's wife, calling her "disgusting Colombian." Some disqualifications that were accompanied by death threats: "You will not get through tonight alive."
"It would be good to make him disappear and kill him, you son of a bitch Colombian," were some of the threats that the hunter directed at Norberto
The judge sentenced the hunter to a fine of 420 euros and another 360 euros for a minor offense of threats and a minor offense of damages and one day of deprivation of liberty for every two daily fees not paid. In addition, he was also sentenced to pay the court costs of the process, although the request for a restraining order to the plaintiff, to the address, to the place of work or any other type frequented by Noberto was denied.
To this day, Norberto assures that he fears that his life and that of his family are in danger now that the partridge hunting season with a shotgun is about to begin next October. "I am afraid that they may attack my life," he acknowledged. And he has warned citizens that he "does not want anyone to enter his farm to hunt."
Another traumatic experience
Norberto lives with fear for his health and that of his wife. Years ago they also experienced another traumatic experience firsthand, for which the worker had to undergo open heart surgery. "When I lived in Colombia, my wife and I were kidnapped by the guerrillas," he recalled. A feeling of insecurity for which he had to request political asylum in Spain, which is why he came to our country. "I had to abandon the five farms with crops that I had and flee my country," he confessed to the newspaper.
A bad experience that he relives every day when he has continuous confrontations with hunters. "I have that problem in Colombia, I come here and I carry an even bigger one," he concluded.
