Víctor Julio Merchán

Víctor Julio Merchán (1909–1980s), known by pseudonyms 'Enrique Andrade', 'Pedro José Abella' and 'Juan García', was a Colombian politician. A brewery worker and union activist at the Bavaria breweries in Bogotá, Merchán became a member of the Revolutionary Socialist Party in 1929 and in 1930 he joined the Colombian Communist Party.

In October 1934, he participated in the Third Conference of Communist Parties of South America and the Caribbean.

In Viota, he went on to building an agrarian mass movement in the area, organizing some 80-100 cells and founding different union organizations. Soon after his arrival, he was arrested after a coffee plantation workers strike and spent a year in jail. He was arrested on April 12, along with other Communist Party leaders, following the Bogotazo events. Merchán served as the secretary of the Tequendama regional committee of the Communist Party. As of the early 1960s, Merchán remained the key leader in the Viotá area and managed a party cadre school there.

As of the 1970s, Merchán was the key agrarian leader of the Communist Party, leading the ANUC.