Costa Rica: International organisations call for an end to violence and impunity against indigenous human rights
defendersIn March last year, indigenous leader Sergio Rojas was killed at his home after being shot 15 times. This brutal attack
drew international attention and condemnation. Last week, the State of Costa Rica, typically considered a human rights
leader within the hemisphere, unexpectedly announced that they would be closing the case and archiving all the
documentation, despite the fact that perpetrators have not been caught or punished.Given the context of violence and impunity faced by indigenous defenders in Costa Rica, national and international
organizations call on the Costa Rican Government to take the necessary measures to end impunity and violence.
The below human rights organisations express deep concern over a situation of structural impunity that exists in Costa
Rica regarding indigenous people’s rights defenders. The official response to the repeated threats, harassment,
violence, and homicides that indigenous leaders and human rights defenders currently face in the country continues to be
characterized by impunity. This impunity puts the lives of all human rights defenders in Costa Rica at risk.
Since 2012, national and international human rights organisations have documented and denounced several cases of
violence and impunity against Bribri and Brörán human rights defenders in Térraba and Salitre, territories located in
the southern region of Costa Rica. Within this context of increasing violence against the Bribri and Brörán, and their
continuous efforts denouncing violations before national and international instances, the communities had been granted
international precautionary measures (MC-312-12) by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR). However,
these precautionary measures have not been respected or fulfilled. Since 2019, two community members have been killed and dozens others shot, seriously injured, forcibly evicted, and threatened with
death.
In March 2019, the Bribri indigenous leader Sergio Rojas beneficiary of IACHR precautionary measures, who defended the rights of indigenous peoples against the illegal
occupation of their territories, was assassinated. At this time, Rojas was a beneficiary of IACHR precautionary
measures. On 24 September the Prosecutor's Office notified Sergio's family of its decision to close the investigation,
after a brief and inadequate investigation. They argued it had not been possible to identify the accused. This action essentially guaranteed impunity for the those responsible and is in violation of the State’s duty to
identify and punish the material and intellectual authors of the crime.
Since the killing of Sergio Rojas, indigenous communities in the Indigenous Territories of Salitre, Térraba, Cabagra,
China Kichá, Maleku and others have experienced an increase in attacks. However, these communities experience
significant obstacles to accessing justice. Investigations are inadequate, protection is not granted to victims or
witnesses of crimes, effective precautionary measures such as preventive detention are not imposed on the aggressors, and no one responsible for any of the above violations has been convicted. Thus,
State structural impunity has contributed to the repetition of attacks against human rights defenders in their
territories.
On February 2020, a second beneficiary of IACHR precautionary measures and Brörán indigenous leader, Jehry Rivera, was
killed while peacefully defending his ancestral lands. He died in the presence of the police, who did not intervene
while the perpetrators attacked him. Despite having confessed to the crime, perpetrators were released and not charged.
Furthermore, his family and the main witnesses of the case have suffered various threats and attacks, which have not
been investigated, and adequate protection measures have not been put in place for them.
Pablo Sibar, Bröran community leader, also a beneficiary of IACHR precautionary measures, has suffered various death threats and
physical attacks, as a result of his work promoting initiatives of peaceful resistance for the restitution of indigenous
lands. Threats and attacks have increased since March 2020. These have not been properly investigated and remain
unpunished.
Minor Ortíz, Bribri indigenous defender, has suffered frequent death threats and assaults, including at least six attempted murders.
Following the most recent murder attempt in March 2020, in which he was shot in the leg, the perpetrator was released
and only received direction to stay a certain distance from Minor Ortíz that have not been respected. Despite the many
formal complaints brought to authorities and reports of the death threats against Minor and his family, the State has
still not put in place any concrete measure to protect their life and integrity.
Similarly, various reports and complaints have been made at national and international levels, in relation to the
attacks suffered by women leaders defending the rights of their Bribri and Brörán territories. On 12 July 2019, one
woman leader was sprayed in the face with chemicals and at least two women defenders reported having been threatened
with weapons within their territory.
We express our deep concern that to date, the Costa Rican State has not brought to justice any perpetrator of violence
against the Bribri and Brörán.
We call on the Government of Costa Rica to carry out immediate, exhaustive and impartial investigations with a view to
identifying and holding accountable the persons responsible for the persistent attacks, murders, and threats against
indigenous defenders.
We urge the State of Costa Rica to reopen the case of Sergio Rojas and fulfill its duty and obligation to punish his
aggressors.
We call on the State to carry out effective and transparent investigations aimed at revealing the extent of such
attacks, and the prosecution and proportional punishment for all acts of violence and threats against all human rights
defenders in accordance with international standards.
Costa Rica is home to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, a beacon for human rights in the hemisphere. With this
honour comes the obligation to demonstrate that human rights defenders are safe within its borders. This impunity cannot
be tolerated.List of organisations supporting the statementAgora Association, TurkeyAIDA AmericasArraigo ONG, Costa RicaAsia Indigenous Peoples Pact (AIPP)Asociación Paz y Esperanza, PerúAsociación Servicios Educativos Rurales, PerúCenter for International Environmental Law (CIEL)Business & Human Rights Resource CentreCentro de Investigación y Defensa Sur (CIDSUR), ChileCentro por la Justicia y el Derechos Internacional (CEJIL)Chirapaq, Centro de Culturas Indígenas del Perú, PerúComisión Intereclesial de Justicia y Paz, ColombiaContinental Network of Indigenous Women of the Americas (ECMIA)Corporación La Caleta, ChileCulture Hack LabsDue Process of Law Foundation (DPLF)Emmaus Aurinkotehdas ry, FinlandEnvironmental Defender Law Center (EDLC)Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF)Federación por la Autodeterminación de los Pueblos Indígenas (FAPI)Forest Peoples Programme (FPP)Front Line Defenders (FLD)groundWork, Friends of the Earth, South AfricaIndigenous Peoples Movement for Self Determination and Liberation (IPMSDL)Iniciativa Mesoamericana de Mujeres Defensoras de Derechos Humanos (IM-Defensoras)Instituto Internacional de Responsabilidad Social y Derechos Humanos (IIRESODH)International Indigenous Peoples Movement for Self-Determination & Liberation (IPMSDL)Lawyers' Association for Human Rights of Nepalese Indigenous Peoples (LAHURNIP)Lawyers' Committee for Human Rights, YUCOM, SerbiaLegal Resources CentreLondres 38, ChileNational Alliance of People's Movements of IndiaNew Wind Association, FinlandObservatorio para la Protección de los Defensores de los Derechos Humanos (FIDH-OMCT)Organización Fraternal Negra Hondureña OFRANEH, HondurasOyu Tolgoi Watch and Rivers without Boundaries Coalition, MongoliaOpen BriefingPorgera Red Wara (River) Women's Association Incorporated (PRWWA INC.), Papua New GuineaProject HEARDProtection International MesoaméricaPublic Association “Dignity”Rainforest FundInternational Network of Human RightsRESAMA - Red Sudamericana para las Migraciones AmbientalesSisters' Arab Forum for Human Rights (SAF), YemenSuccess Capital
* Dr. Marco Guevara Berger, catedrático, Universidad de Costa Rica
* Prafulla Samantara (Goldman Environmental Prize Recipient 2017 for Asia)
* Pofesora Xinia Zuñiga Muñoz, Investigadora Cicde- Uned y Ucrea, Universidad de Costa Rica