Murder of Chilean environmentalists has leftwing parties taking a stance
Chilean environmentalist Javiera Rojas was found dead in what seems to be yet another case of femicide, but one that has unleashed a series of condemnations from many of her colleagues and human rights organizations alike to raise awareness about the nature of these crimes.
“This crime cannot go unpunished. It is necessary to clarify the facts as soon as possible and determine the corresponding penal sanctions,” left-wing presidential candidate Gabriel Boric said on Twitter.
Rojas, a 43-year-old activist, was found dead last Sunday in a building located in the town of Calama, in the Atacama desert.
“Violence is permanent in those territories that are sacrificial for women, and can reach such horrific instances as the one experienced by our partner, making visible the cruel alliance that exists between extractivism and patriarchy,” the environmentalist Movimiento por el Agua y Los Territorios (MAT) organization said.
The woman's body was found in a ruined building, tied up and with various wounds on her body, according to local media. Two men have been arrested Monday, which would mean the case, however brutal or tragic is solved.
Nevertheless, opposition Deputies Catalina Pérez and Marcela Sandoval, who also serves as chairwoman of the Lower House's Environment Committee, have announced they will get involved in the case and seek a special prosecutor to be appointed to the inquiry.
Senator and former centre-left presidential candidate Yasna Provoste said the activist's death “must be investigated in-depth and promptly.”
The NGO Global Witness has reported Latin America was the deadliest region for environmental defenders, with 148 of the 212 murders committed worldwide against these activists in 2019.
“The murder of Javiera Rojas shows how dangerous it is to be an environmental defender in Latin America. No more dead environmental defenders!” Tweeted the NGO Fundación Glaciares Chilenos.
