Gustavo Moncayo

Gustavo Guillermo Moncayo Rincón (29 November 1952 – 15 November 2022),[1][2] popularly known as El caminante por la paz (Spanish for the Walker for Peace), was a Colombian teacher who in 2007 walked 1,186 km from his hometown Sandoná, in the department of Nariño in the south of Colombia to the capital city Bogotá, seeking to promote an agreement for the release of his son Pablo Emilio who had been a prisoner of the guerrilla group FARC since 1997.

[3] On 17 June 2007, which is Father's Day in Colombia, Moncayo, accompanied by his daughter, began walking from Sandoná[4] along the Pan-American Highway, stopping in every town he found on his path, to rest and to collect signatures on a petition asking President Álvaro Uribe to free his son, and other hostages held by the FARC, through a prisoner-exchange.

[7] On Wednesday, 1 August 2007, Moncayo walked the last stretch of his journey, to the historic downtown of the capital city, and arrived in Bolívar Square, cheered on by thousands of people.

[9] The direct attacks on Moncayo and his family were perpetrated by far-right groups, including paramilitaries and supporters of the government of Álvaro Uribe, even after the release of his son.

[10] On 16 April 2009, FARC announced that they intended to release Pablo to his father and liberal Senator Piedad Córdoba as a humanitarian gesture.