A policeman in Guatemala, July 18, 2020 (illustration). - Moises Castillo / AP / SIPA

For Emmanuel Macron it is a "cowardly assassination". The emotion is great since the death Monday in Guatemala of a French aid worker, killed in an ambush. The act against Benoît Maria sparked a wave of indignation, both in France and in the small Central American country.

In Guatemala, Benoît Maria had been leading agricultural projects for the benefit of indigenous Mayan communities for 20 years and helping them to preserve their lands. He was cowardly murdered yesterday. I salute his humanist, fraternal and united commitment which does France honor.

- Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) August 11, 2020

The French president praised the "humanitarian, fraternal, united commitment which does honor to France" of the French national who had lived for 20 years in Guatemala where he worked "in favor of the indigenous Mayan communities" that he "helped to preserve their land ”. Benoît Maria was responsible in Guatemala for Agronomes et Vétérinaires Sans Frontières (AVSF), an NGO that supports peasant agriculture in some 20 countries.

Guatemalan vice-president wants investigation

The ASVF, for its part, expressed its “immense sadness” at the loss of “a solidarity professional, (of) an activist of the peasant and indigenous cause and (of) a friend”. "Benoît was cowardly murdered by armed individuals" took offense to the NGO, which assures us that it will do "everything in (its) power so that this despicable crime is elucidated and justice is done quickly". The motive for this murder is not yet known.

In Guatemala, Vice-President Guillermo Castillo called on the courts to shed light on this murder. "It is essential that the competent institutions shed light on this fact of violence, as well as other committed against human rights defenders," he insisted. Benoît Maria "has dedicated a large part of his life to promoting the community development of vulnerable populations", greeted the Guatemalan vice-president. The indigenous leader and Nobel Peace Prize 1992 Rigoberta Menchu ​​for her part greeted in "Benoît Maria, (a) great defender of the rights of the Mayas" and assured of his "solidarity his family and the communities Ixil and Q'eqchi" that he was working with. The European Union representation in Guatemala also praised the humanitarian work of Benoît Maria.

The Unit for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders in Guatemala counted between January and April at least 157 attacks against activists in the country, and 462 for the whole of 2019, including 15 murders.

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  • World
  • Emmanuel Macron
  • Murder
  • NGO
  • Guatemala