Madre Selva Collective

Currently: We visit the organisations office regularly and have frequent contact with their members during their work in different departments throughout the country. PBI has been accompanying members of Madre Selva since June 2004 in some of their journeys to the regions where they carry out their work, and have continued a regular presence in their office in the capital.

Background: Madre Selva is an environmental organisation which holds regular workshops on the negative impactof mega-projects and in particular those involving open-pit mining and the installation of hydroelectric power plants.Members of the organisation regularly receive threats because of their work, above all in areas where conflictsexist over the issues that the collective reports about. Recently, some members of the organisation have onceagain begun receiving serious threats. Presently the organisation is target to a series of defamation campaignslinked to the publication of an environmental study concerning the pollution found in the waters of the River Tzaláin San Marcos. The author of the study, since its publication, has received a series of threats. This situation has provoked an international reaction from various human rights organizations in support of the organisation and theauthor, whom eventually left the country.