QUITO (AP) — The person in charge of International Relations of the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (CONAIE) and leader of the Cofán Amazonian community, Eduardo Mendúa, was assassinated on Sunday in the province of Sucumbíos, unleashing a new episode of tension and commotion .
The president of CONAIE, Leonidas Iza, pointed out in a public statement that Mendúa was shot to death, in a “hitman-like” act, on Sunday afternoon at his home in the Dureno Cofán community.
The indigenous leader assured that Mendúa “was not doing anything other than fighting against extractive policies” and was “one of the most visible faces of the resistance for the defense of the territory”, before the opening of new oil wells without prior consultation with communities, as established in the Constitution, he stated.
Iza demanded answers from the government and the state oil company Petroecuador for the murder of the Amazonian leader, and called on international human rights organizations to protect the lives of the leaders of the indigenous movement, as he assured that “the 10 members of the council of the CONAIE have threats”.
From the Office of the Special Rapporteur for the Human Rights of Indigenous Peoples of the United Nations Organization, its head, José Francisco Calí, condemned the act and affirmed that “it was with great sadness that he received the news of the vile murder of brother Eduardo Mendúa.” Through Twitter, the rapporteur requested the “prompt action of the justice entities so that the case does not go unpunished.”
The President of the Republic, Guillermo Lasso, expressed his solidarity with the victim’s family and with CONAIE, and stated that “this crime will not go unpunished,” he wrote on Sunday night on his Twitter account. He added that all the necessary investigative actions have been arranged “to find those responsible and bring them to justice.”
The Minister of the Interior, Juan Zapata, in the same social network, reported on the transfer of an investigation team from the Ecuadorian Police to provide support to the Prosecutor’s Office in order to locate the perpetrators of Mendúa’s murder and asserted that “We will not allow impunity.”
In January 2023, the Cofán leader, in a message released by the Amazon branch of CONAIE, which he represented, assured that in his Dureno community there had been clashes with the Police over opposition to the operation of some 30 oil wells in his territory. without prior consultation.
The Cofán people live in the north of the Amazon and are present on the border between Ecuador and Colombia.
