Indigenous leadership against dams is killed in Honduras

The movements affected by dams of Latin-America grief the death of comrade Berta Cáceres.

For our dead, no minute of silence!

The coordinator of the Council of Indigenous Peoples of Honduras (COPINH), Berta Caceres, was killed early on Thursday (3) by people still unknown. The member of the general coordination of COPINH, Tomas Membreño, confirmed that Berta was murdered in La Esperanza, Intibucá, around 1 am by men who invaded her home.

Berta Caceres received in April last year, the prize Goldman, considered the Nobel of the Environment for her work with indigenous peoples. At the time of the award, Berta told the Spanish newspaper El Diario that it’s very easy to kill someone in Honduras.

“This impunity in the country, responsible for serious human rights violations, we who fight for land,water, land and life for not to fall into private hands and be destroyed, put our lives at risk. It is very easy to kill someone here, the cost we pay is very high. But the most important is that we have a force that comes from our ancestors, heritage of thousands of years, of which we are proud. This is our food and our belief in time to fight,” said Berta.

The leadership led an historic achievement with the Lenca people, managed to expel the one of the largest construction company of dams, the Chinese Sinohydro. After many years of struggle, the members of the Río Blanco community managed to expel the hydroelectric project planned for Gualcarque river.

After the military coup which overthrew the former President Manuel Zelaya, murders and political persecution of social leaders increased significantly. Also according to the newspaper El Diario, the research “How many more?”indicated that Honduras is the most dangerous country for social activists.

On the eve of March 8, International Day of the struggle of women, movements of people affected by dams in Latin America receives painly the news over the death of Berta, important Latin American indigenous leadership.

In Brazil, we experienced a similar loss with the disappearance of Nicinha, from the Movement of People Affected by Dams (MAB). After two months without any news about her who led the resistance against the truculence of hydroelectric Santo Antônio and Jirau, we still havent’ got any response from the responsible agencies.

In this month of March, the international day of struggle against dams, we will make the memory of these fighters the strength to continue our resistance. For our dead, no minute of silence.

Woman, water and energy are not commodities!

Berta Cáceres: present!

Nicinha: present!

Signs the note:

Movimento dos Atingidos por Barragens (MAB)

MAPDER – Movimiento Mexicano de Afectados por Presas en Defensa de los Rios, México

Movimiento Colombiano en Defensa de los Territorios y Afectados por Represas – Ríos Vivos, Colômbia

Movimiento Amplio por la Dignidad y la Justicia (MADJ), Honduras

MOCICC, Peru

Bios Iguana A.C., México

LA VIDA, México

Red Nacional para la Defensa del Agua, Panamá

Funprocoop, El Salvador

Forum Solidaridad Peru

Patagonia sin represas, Chile

Otros Mundos Chiapas, México

Patria Grande, Argentina