“Environment defender butchered in Lambayeque” – 13 January 15, 2018

Environmental defender and local community activist José Napoleon Tarrillo (also known by the nickname of Napo) was killed on 30 December; four men entered his home, tortured and killed him in an action believed to be linked to his efforts to defend the land of the Chaparrí Ecological Reserve, in Lambayeque. He had recently been elected as teniente gobernador of El Mirador village, where the reserve is located. The land there has been cleared to make way for sowing crops. The reserve is home to one of the largest populations of spectacled bears in South America…Land prices in the area have increased substantially since 2012 when plans for two reservoirs were announced. The project is currently on hold but, according to wildlife photographer Heinz Plenge, “mafias are trying to grab hold of as much communal land as possible and take over peasant communities which can be easily bought off”. He adds “these lands are bought up by small operators, but behind them are politicians and very powerful businessmen.”…