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CHICAGO –– This week, environmental justice organizers, activists, and Berta Cáceres’ family received a historic victory in the guilty verdict of Roberto David Castillo, a former U.S.-trained Honduran army intelligence officer and former head of the damn company Desarrollos Energéticos, or DESA, who helped orchestrate Berta’s murder. Below you will find a joint statement from Alianza Americas and Presente.org:
“Berta Cáceres leaves behind an enormous legacy that has inspired indigenous communities from across the globe to continue fighting to protect their land and our planet. Roberto David Castillo’s guilty verdict could not have been possible without the leadership of environmental justice defenders like Berta. We stand in solidarity with the Lenca people fighting to protect their sacred Gualcarque river and accept Berta’s daughter, Laura Zúñiga Cáceres’ calls to continue supporting the efforts of civil society organizations in Honduras fighting against impunity and ensuring that all involved in Berta’s murder are held accountable,” stated Oscar Chacon, executive director of Alianza Americas.
“From the headwaters of the Mississippi River in Minnesota to the Gualcarque River in Honduras, indigenous communities are on the frontlines fighting to protect sacred water and land. For decades, corporations seeking profits at the expense of our planet have tried any tactic at their disposal to stop organized communities from halting projects such as the Agua Zarca dam in Honduras, which Berta Cáceres worked so hard to stop. The insidious collaboration of DESA and military intelligence specialists to undermine the human rights of indigenous people resulted in the tragic murder of Berta. We welcome the historic guilty verdict of Roberto David Castillo, a co-collaborator in ordering Berta’s murder, and we are in solidarity with the Lenca people and Berta’s family who never wavered in their fight for justice,” stated Matt Nelson, executive director of Presente.org.
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Alianza Americas is a network of migrant-led organizations working in the United States and transnationally to create an inclusive, equitable and sustainable way of life for communities across North, Central and South America.
Presente.org is the nation’s largest online Latinx organizing group — and the nation’s premier Latinx digital organizing hub — advancing social justice with technology, media, and culture. Build Power. Change Culture. ¡Stay Presente!
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