Land Invaders Attack Indigenous Farmers in Bosawas Biosphere

leaving 13 dead, Fundacion del Rio reports

From 100% Noticias

HAVANA TIMES – A new attack by land invaders has left at least 13 indigenous locals dead in the Kiwakumbaih community, Musawas region within the Bosawas Biosphere Reserve, announced Amaru Ruiz, an environmental activist and director of Fundacion del Rio.

According to Ruiz, the victims were in an artisanal mine when they were attacked by invaders. “The attack took place between 7 – 9 PM within the Kiwakumbaih hill (“Devil’s rock” in Mayangna), a historic hill as a sacred place and as a place for hunting and traditional fishing,” she explained.

The president of Fundacion del Rio assures that the police and army have refused to address the situation. “The number of fatalities has yet to be confirmed, and indigenous families have been unable to enter the area because it continues to be occupied by the land invaders,” she pointed out.

A local told Nicaragua Actual that they haven’t managed to remove the bodies because the invaders are still present in the area. “We have asked the police for help and they told us that they couldn’t enter. Up until now, community members are moving to bring back the bodies. Neither the Police or Army have given us an answer.”

The Kiwakumbaih community is located seven hours away from the Alal community, the nearest community, and eight hours away from the Musawas community.

Trying to recover land

In 2020, the community had been occupied by armed invaders in order to carry out mining-related activities, but they were evicted on November 12th 2020.

“It’s an area where small-scale mining takes place. The invaders returned and carried out this new massacre, the exact dimensions of which are still unknown,” Ruiz pointed out.