Today in Puerto Maldonado, Peru, Administrator Samantha Power announced a new program expanding USAID's commitment to protect Indigenous People who defend environmental and human rights in Peru's Amazon. In recognition of the key role of Indigenous defenders, USAID is bolstering the efforts of local Indigenous organizations and government authorities to address safety threats and issues of impunity, improve effective protections, and uphold fundamental rights for defenders.
Peru's Indigenous Peoples and communities are on the frontline when it comes to the impact of threats such as illegal mining, logging, and land theft, especially in the Amazon region. Amid a growing context of violence, harassment, and intimidation, Indigenous leaders in the Peruvian Amazon play a key and courageous role in monitoring illegal activities and protecting biodiverse landscapes.
With an investment of $2.5 million, the Indigenous Defenders Justice (IDJ) initiative, implemented by the Peruvian Protected Natural Areas Promotion Fund in partnership with the Interethnic Association for the Development of the Amazon and Environmental Rights and Natural Resources (DAR), will focus on the Loreto, Madre de Dios, and Ucayali regions where illicit activity is widespread and threats to Indigenous defenders are common. The IDJ initiative aims to reinforce connections between self-protection efforts of Indigenous communities and government initiatives, and to strengthen the enabling environment for policies that safeguard the rights and protections of Indigenous defenders of the Amazon.
USAID's support for Peruvian Indigenous and environmental defenders comes at a critical time as, according to Global Witness, Peru ranks among the world's top ten most dangerous countries for human rights defenders, especially those working in the Amazon. Approximately 36 Amazon defenders have been killed in Peru since 2014, most of them Indigenous. USAID is committed to supporting Peru's Indigenous Peoples by ensuring respect towards the guaranteed exercise of their rights, promoting secure effective protections, and ending impunity.
