Jambalo, Cauca, Colombia - Since he was a teenager, Edinson

Quiguanas has helped patrol the roadside checkpoints on the outskirts of

his Indigenous village in rural Colombia. This time, his orders are
different: no one enters and no one leaves.

"Before, we protected the community by watching for armed groups," he

said. "Now the threat is something you can't see."

Colombian President Ivan Duque ordered a nationwide lockdown that

began on March 24 to control the spread of the novel coronavirus, which
has infected more than 5,142 people and infected 233.

Indigenous groups, faced with their own challenges and risks in fighting
COVID-19, are taking matters into their own hands. More than 15,000
unarmed guardians from the Guardia Indigena (Indigenous Guardians or
Guards), a civilian, community defence force, have mobilised throughout
the country to prevent the virus from reaching Indigenous reserves,
enforcing the command #QuedateEnElTerritorio, or "stay in the
territory".