Afro-Descendant & Indigenous: News & Updates

The judicial system in Chiapas fabricates crimes as a method of repression. Authorities are currently fabricating charges against Tzeltal human rights and environment defenders because of their opposition to the militarization of their territory and construction of infrastructure for mega-tourism projects.

Manuel Santiz Cruz, president of the Human Rights Committee of San Juan Evangelista Catholic parish in San Juan Cancuc, was falsely arrested on May 29 for drug possession. He was released and re-arrested a day later for aggravated homicide. By June 4, a total of eight Tzeltal defenders had been arrested:  Manuel Santiz Cruz, Agustín Pérez Velasco, Martin Pérez Domínguez, Juan Velasco Aguilar, Agustín Pérez Domínguez, and three more persons (names withheld for their personal security).

These arbitrary detentions take place in a context in which inhabitants of San Juan Cancuc have opposed the military presence in their territory and the construction of a highway project that would connect San Cristóbal de las Casas with the region of Palenque. The highway is part of the development of mega-tourism projects in the region that have been promoted by the government without free, prior informed and culturally appropriate consultation with impacted Indigenous communities.

We are deeply concerned about the ability of Indigenous communities and leaders to carry out their legitimate activities in defense of their peoples’ territories and waterways. Last year we wrote to authorities about the about the assassination of Tzeltal human rights defender Simón Pedro Pérez López, age 35, in the Los Bosques de Chiapas region of Chiapas State (cf our letter July 6, 2021).

We wrote once again to officials in Guatemala about the criminalization of environmental defenders in El Estor, Izabal Department, who have been resisting the El Fénix nickel mine, which has been operating illegally since 2005. Although the Constitutional Court of Guatemala ruled in 2019 that the Guatemalan Nickel Company had to suspend its mining activities, the government re-issued an operations permit in January 2022. 

Cristóbal Pop and Roque Sub Cucul were captured by police today in Guatemala City after a press conference in which they announced that they would sue the State of Guatemala before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights for the illegal installation of the El Fénix nickel mine and the criminalization of environmental defenders. Cristóbal Pop is president of the Fishermen’s Guild of El Estor, which has been denouncing the contamination of Lake Izabal resulting from the nickel mine. Roque Sub Cucul is an Indigenous leader of the Mayan Q'eqchi' ancestral council in Alta Verapaz Department.

We condemn acts of state violence and criminalization of Indigenous environmental rights defenders in El Estor and urge the government of Guatemala to release from detention and drop the criminal charges against Cristóbal Pop and Roque Sub Cucul.

Pablo Ramos, age 66, president of the Community Directive of CODECA (Committee for Campesino Development) in the rural community of Navajoa, Morales Municipality, Izabal Department, was assassinated on June 7. The previous day he had gone to a hearing at the Public Ministry in Morales to register his community’s opposition to the illegal commercialization of their properties (dividing and re-selling of campesino plots). Pablo Ramos had been summoned to the hearing by the Manchame family, which is involved in land disputes with several community residents. There have been reports of threats to Pablo Ramos by members of the Manchame family.

We are deeply concerned about the targeted killings of leaders of CODECA, which has 90,000 members across Guatemala. Shot dead while working in the general store he ran from his home, Pablo Ramos became the 24th member of CODECA killed in Guatemala since 2018.

We wrote to officials in Colombia to demand accountability for the assassination of Jesusita Moreno, an Afro-descendant community leader of the San Juan River basin in Chocó Department. Affectionately known as Doña Tuta, the 60-year-old was killed on June 7 when several armed men entered her house in the La Floresta neighborhood of Cali and shot her repeatedly. 

Afro-descendant and Indigenous communities in the middle and lower San Juan River basin have been overwhelmed by the intensity and degradation of the armed conflict. Jesusita Moreno worked tirelessly to alleviate the humanitarian crisis in the community of Noanamá in Istmina municipality. She helped to broker agreements with armed groups to respect civilian populations. One of Doña Tuta's dreams was creating a shelter-refuge in Noanamá for displaced persons so they could remain close to home and not have to flee to the cities.