Manuel Pérez (guerrilla leader)

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Manuel Pérez (died 1998), also known as "El Cura Pérez" ("Pérez the Priest"), was leader of the Colombian National Liberation Army (ELN) over three decades.

Born in Spain, Pérez was originally a priest, and worked in Spain, France, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic. Following his expulsion from the Dominican Republic in 1968 he went to Colombia, and in 1969 joined the ELN. He became that group's leader some time in the 1970s and remained so until his death in 1998 from Hepatitis B.

Pérez was considered an extremist; one former guerrilla described him as "rigid, brutal and unintelligent"[1]. His leadership is thought to have significantly affected the ELN's ideology (Cuban-style Marxism and extreme liberation theology) and methods (which led to accusations of kidnapping, torture, and execution)[1].

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b "Colombian rebel leader dies" by Timothy Ross, BBC News, April 6, 1998, retrieved February 18, 2006
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