The motive is not yet known. Frenchman Benoît Maria, director of the NGO Agronomes and Veterinarians Without Borders (AVSF) in Guatemala, was killed on Monday in an armed attack, announced the Unit for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders of Guatemala (Udefegua).
Request for an investigation
“We denounce the murder of human rights defender Benoît Maria,” Udefegua tweeted, calling for an investigation by the public prosecutor. According to several local media outlets, the Frenchman was driving a van on a road near the indigenous village of San Antonio Ilotenango, some 85 km northwest of the capital, when he was shot dead.
❌ # JUSTICIA
Repudiamos el asesinato del defensor de #DDHH, Benoît María, from the org. de agrónomos y veterinarios sin fronteras en Guatemala, exigimos al @MPguatemala carry out the relevant investigation based on the Instrucción General 5-2018 y den con las personas responsible. pic.twitter.com/CZ9WXagdDy
According to Jorge Santos, coordinator of Udefegua, Benoît Maria was at the head of AVSF and had lived for more than twenty years in Guatemala, where he notably provided support for agricultural projects in favor of the indigenous Mayan communities of Ixil. He also participated in the creation in 2011 of the University of Ixil, in the department of Quiché, dedicated to the ancestral knowledge of indigenous peoples.
Planet
In Guatemala, the Pacaya volcano monitored after a significant increase in its activity
Planet
212 conservationists killed in 2019, a record
- NGO
- Miscellaneous
- Murder
- World
- Guatemala