Jesús Quintana, director of Ciat, kidnapped

The authorities reported that Jesús Quintana García, a Spanish national and director of the International Center for Tropical Agriculture, CIAT, in Palmira, was kidnapped on the afternoon of this Sunday.

Apparently, the events occurred in the municipality of Toribío, Cauca, when an agronomist was driving, in his vehicle, to the city of Neiva.

According to the Director of the National Police, General Óscar Atehortúa, an armed group held this person at an illegal checkpoint and took him away.

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“This person, due to his foreign origin, caught the attention of this criminal organization, therefore, it is known that they are trying to make an economic demand,” he said.

For his part, Carlos Holmes Trujillo, Minister of Defense, asked the kidnappers to release Quintana García, since he is an international official with diplomatic status.

“We call on those who have the Spanish citizen in their power to release, as soon as possible, is an international civil servant with diplomatic status who runs a tropical agriculture center that is a source of pride for our country,” he said.

And he added: “that CIAT is based in our country is a source of pride for us because very few countries in the world have the possibility of having a headquarters for this organization, which exists for the benefit of all Colombians. “.

Meanwhile, Óscar Escobar, the mayor of Palmira, rejected the fact through his Twitter account.

“I reject this fact that not only affects CIAT, but also all the agricultural research institutions that from Palmira and the southwestern part of Colombia contribute to innovation in the field,” he said.

It should be remembered that the International Center for Tropical Agriculture, CIAT, is an organization that conducts research to improve agricultural productivity and the management of natural resources in tropical and developing countries.