María Elena Salinas

Job:
Medium:
Beats Covered:
Gender:
Local or Foreign:
Freelance:

Salinas, a freelance journalist, was found dead along with two members of the leftist National Liberation Army (ELN). All three were killed during a confrontation with army troops in the central department of Antioquia.

According to local sources, Salinas had studied journalism and was investigating armed conflicts in the Antioquia region at the time of her death. But she was apparently not employed by a media organization, and her family did not clarify whether or not she was working as a journalist when she died.

A local source told CPJ that Salinas had previously been accused of having links with the ELN, but that the charge was dismissed for lack of evidence.

Because of the uncertainty surrounding her case, CPJ has been unable to confirm whether Salinas was killed for her work as a journalist.