Report: Latin American Environmentalists Most At Risk Of Murder

Facts

• According to a report by the international advocacy group Global Witness, more environmentalists were killed in Latin America than in any other region of the world last year.
• The group reported that 200 environmentalists were killed globally in 2021, three-quarters of whom were from Latin America. While this is less than the reported 227 deaths in 2020, countries including Mexico, Colombia, and Brazil saw an increase and accounted for over half of the total killings.
• The report also highlighted a disproportionate number of attacks against indigenous people, who reportedly made up more than 40% of the fatal attacks documented despite only representing 5% of the world's population.
• Global Witness found that land disputes over resource exploitation, mining, logging, and industrial-scale farming are the leading cause of many of these attacks.
• In Mexico — which saw the highest rate of any country, with 54 killings last year — investigators believe that local authorities are implicated in 40% of the environmental activist killings, though only two cases have resulted in a suspect being charged.
• The NGO also revealed that more than 1.7k global killings of environmental activists were reported between 2012 and 2021, amounting to one person killed nearly every two days.

Sources: Global Witness, US, Latin Post, Washington Post, and Guardian.

Narratives

• Narrative A, as provided by U.S. Department of State. These alarming numbers highlight a growing global issue that not only disproportionately affects minorities and tramples human rights but also risks ecological collapse. Activists — who play a crucial role as the first line of defense for the environment — are being brutally killed, and as the climate crisis intensifies, so will the attacks. It's up to governments to protect them and hold those responsible accountable for their crimes.
• Narrative B, as provided by Sierra. While governments certainly need to take prompt action, they first need to start by looking within: By turning a blind eye — as too often happens — governments aren't just witnesses to these horrific murders but rather are fully complicit. This goes beyond homicide in some cases, edging dangerously close to the territory of assassination and state-sanctioned violence.