The president of the Confederation of Ethnic Peoples (COMPAH) of Honduras reported that Elipidio Martinez Chavarria, leader of the Pech of eastern Honduras, was fatally shot on Saturday in Dulce Nombre de Culmi, Olancho province. Martinez was the head of the Federation of Pech Tribes of Honduras and was a leading force against landowners and loggers taking over indigenous lands in the region. The motive for the killing is unknown, but COMPAH believes that Chavarria’s death was linked to the defense of land. The shooting was the seventh in a string of attacks against Pech peoples since the 1990s. Chavarria was the 53rd indigenous leader in Honduras to be murdered in the past three years. Pravia, whose organization represents indigenous peoples, has called for an investigation into the death.
