Quinto Inuma Alvarado

Quinto Inuma Alvarado
Headshot of Quinto Inuma in front of some plants
Quinto Inuma Alvarado on 11 October 2019
Born1972 or 1973
Died (aged 50)[1]
Huimbayoc District, San Martín Province, Peru
Cause of deathAssassination by gunshot
Occupations
  • Tribal leader
  • Conservationist
TitleApu of Santa Rosillo de Yanayacu Indigenous Community

Quinto Inuma Alvarado (1973 – 29 November 2023) was a Kichwa tribal leader from Peru.[2] He was the apu of the Santa Rosillo de Yanayacu [es] indigenous community and one of the leading environmental defenders of the Department of San Martín.[3] He was assassinated in 2023.

Throughout his life, Inuma fought against the deforestation of the Amazon rainforest in the lands of the Quechua. He denounced illegal logging and drug trafficking and advocated for legal protection of the Lower Huallaga region. He faced threats from loggers and drug traffickers. The Peruvian State assumed responsibility for his defense, but lacked the necessary protections. On 29 November 2023, while returning home from an environmental conference in Pucallpa, Inuma was shot and killed.

Career

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From 2006 to 2014, Inuma worked as a park ranger at the Servicio Nacional de Áreas Naturales Protegidas (SERNANP), at Cordillera Azul National Park.[4]

In 2017, Quinto Inuma Alvarado became vice apu of the Santa Rosillo de Yanayacu [es] indigenous community, with his brother Manuel Inuma Alvarado serving as apu.[5] He frequently denounced the logging of tree species in the Huimbayoc area, which made him the target of threats and violence.[6] He advocated for the titling of his community and the preservation of forests in indigenous communities.[7]

In July 2021, he was beaten and received death threats for his forest activism. Representatives of the Tarapoto Provincial Office Specialized in Crimes of Illicit Drug Trafficking entered the community in response to complaints against illegal loggers and cocaleros.[8] Threats and actions against Inuma and his family increased. After the website SERVINDI [es] disseminated images of the injuries inflicted on Inuma by cocaleros, he temporarily took refuge in Tarapoto to protect his and his family's safety. Despite the threats, Inuma chose to remain in his community. The same year, an article by the Forest Peoples Programme discussed this situation in Santa Rosillo and the nearby Anak Kurutuyacu community.[9]

On 15 November 2023, he addressed the Supraprovincial Criminal Prosecutor's Office Specialized in Human Rights and Interculturalism about residents of the area who had threatened him and assaulted an indigenous person. He was guaranteed measures of protection.[10] The Peruvian State assumed the responsibility of protecting him under the Intersectoral Mechanism for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders [es]. This commitment was formalized by Directorial Resolution No. 003-2021-JUS/DGDH, which guaranteed his personal security. This mechanism included police surveillance and protection, which was not put into action.[11][12][13]

Assassination

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Inuma participated in a workshop of environmental defenders in Pucallpa from 23 to 27 November 2023. During this meeting, he said in one of his final statements:[14]

Retirarnos de la comunidad previno un atentado de muerte, pero nuestros hermanos están solos. Pedimos regresar para defender nuestra tierra. Si debo morir, moriré.
Our withdrawal from the community prevented an attempt on our lives, but our brothers are alone. We request to return to defend our land. If I must die, I will die.

—Quinto Inuma Alvarado

Inuma was assassinated on the evening of 29 November 2023, while returning home from Pucallpa. He was shot three times.[4]

He last saw his eldest son Kevin at 3 a. m., when he departed for Tarapoto through Huimbayoc District, where he arrived at 10 a. m. He arrived at the settlement of San José de Yanayacu, where he boarded a boat to his community. Six family members accompanied him on the trip, including his wife Bety Marlith Mandruma Flores, his second son Jeanpiere, his niece Axceldina Barbarán Tapullima, and his nephew Meister Inuma Pérez, who served as the vice apu.[15][16][1]

One and a half hours before arriving to the community, the boat was intrecepted near a creek called Bayada. Hooded individuals knocked down a tree to block the boat. Inuma, who had been driving the boat, stood up and analyzed how to avoid the obstacle, when he was shot three times. The bullet shells wounded Barbarán Tapullima in the leg, buttock, and rib. She and the other occupants returned home on horseback and carried Inuma's body.[16]

Reactions

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The Interethnic Association for the Development of the Peruvian Rainforest issued a statement condemning the assassination and demanding the Peruvian government to punish the assailants. It requested the implementation of mechanisms to defend those who protect their territories from criminal organizations. The Coordinating Committee for the Development and Defence of Indigenous Peoples in the San Martin Region [es] issued a statement highlighting that Inuma had sought help from the government to defend against threats on his life, obtain the titling of his community, and stop illegal activities.[15]

Marisol García Apagueño, the president of the Federation of Indigenous Kechua Chazuta Amazonian Peoples, said in a statement:[7]

La muerte de nuestro líder que luchaba por la titularidad de su territorio no debe quedar impune. El Ministerio Público debe investigar y sancionar a los culpables, y el gobierno debe dar seguridad jurídica a nuestra comunidad. La comunidad nativa Santa Rosillo de Yanayacu viene solicitando desde hace muchos años que el Bajo Huallaga sea declarado en emergencia ante el incremento del narcotráfico que viene afectando gravemente los derechos de los pueblos indígenas.
The death of our leader who fought for the titling of his territory cannot remain unpunished. The Public Ministry must investigate and sanction those responsible, and the government must provide legal certainty for our community. For many years, the native community of Santa Rosillo de Yanayacu has been requesting that the Lower Huallaga be declared an emergency due to the increase in drug trafficking that gravely affects the rights of indigenous people.

—Marisol García Apagueño

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights said:[15]

Condenamos el asesinato del defensor y apu Quinto Inuma. Expresamos condolencias a la familia y a la comunidad nativa Santa Rosillo de Yanayacu. Llamamos a las autoridades a garantizar una investigación pronta de los hechos.
We condemn the assassination of the defender and apu Quinto Inuma. We express our condolences to his family and the native community of Santa Rosillo de Yanayacu. We call upon authorities to guarantee a prompt examination of the facts.

—OHCHR Peru

Investigation

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The investigation of the assassination was conducted by the Specialized Prosecutor's Office in Environmental Matters [es] of Alto Amazonas. The provincial prosecutor in charge is Berta Rengifo Vásquez.[17]

On 12 February 2024, at the Third Supraprovincial Prosecutor's Office Against Organized Crime, Genix Saboya Saboya confessed that he had shot Inuma in the back for a payment of 1000 soles from Segundo Villalobos Guevara, who Inuma had denounced for illegal logging in Santa Rosillo. Genix named his uncle, Belustiano Saboya Pisco, as the one who fatally shot Inuma in the head.[17]

Legacy

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At the Hatun Tupanakuy for Climate Justice, celebrated in Cusco on 14 and 15 June 2024, Member of Congress Ruth Luque [es], president of the Committee on Environement and Ecology of Andean, Amazonian, and Afro-Peruvian Peoples [es], posthumously paid tribute to several environmental leaders, including Inuma.[18]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Chumpitaz, Óscar (1 December 2023). "Sicarios asesinan a defensor ambiental Quinto Inuma" [Gunmen assassinate environmental defender Quinto Inuma]. La República (in Spanish). Retrieved 17 August 2024.
  2. ^ Davey, Ed; Pereda Zavaleta, David (30 November 2023). "Peruvian rainforest defender from embattled Kichwa tribe shot dead in river attack". Associated Press. Retrieved 18 August 2024.
  3. ^ "Asesinan a Quinto Inuma Alvarado, defensor ambiental de San Martín". Convoca.pe - Agenda Propia (in Spanish). Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  4. ^ a b Hurtado, Jonathan (3 December 2023). "Quinto Inuma: la víctima más reciente de 10 años de avance de economías ilegales en la Amazonía". Ojo Público (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  5. ^ Anteparra, Hugo (30 April 2023). "Santa Rosillo: una comunidad amazónica que combate la tala ilegal y el abandono del Estado". GK (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  6. ^ scardoza (30 November 2023). "San Martín: asesinan a líder y defensor indígena kichwa, Quinto Inuma". Cutivalú Piura (in Spanish). Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  7. ^ a b León, Por Valeri (30 November 2023). "San Martín: asesinan a defensor ambiental Quinto Inuma Alvarado". infobae (in European Spanish). Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  8. ^ Redacción EC (30 November 2023). "Pucallpa: asesinan al defensor indígena Quinto Inuma frente a su familia tras denunciar tala ilegal" (in Spanish). El Comercio. ISSN 1605-3052. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  9. ^ "Luego de 6 años de denunciar amenazas, asesinan a Quinto Inuma Alvarado, líder kichwa". ibrehaut.lamula.pe (in Spanish). Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  10. ^ Voces (30 November 2023). "La Defensa del Medio Ambiente está de luto por el asesinato del apu Quinto Inuma". Diario Voces (in Spanish). Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  11. ^ Panizo Arana, Mathías (1 December 2023). "San Martín: todo sobre el crimen a balazos contra defensor ambiental Quinto Inuma Alvarado" (in Spanish). El Comercio. ISSN 1605-3052. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  12. ^ yvette (26 September 2022). "Santa Rosillo de Yanayacu: amenazas, deforestación y un lento camino por la titulación". Noticias ambientales (in Spanish). Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  13. ^ "Defensoría del Pueblo: Estado debe proteger a los defensores de derechos, investigación debe ser diligente sobre muerte de defensor ambiental Quinto Inuma Alvarado". Defensoria del Pueblo - Perú (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  14. ^ "Silenciaron una voz: Asesinaron al líder indígena Quinto Inuma". CEFO Indígena. 1 December 2023. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
  15. ^ a b c reytuerto (30 November 2023). "Pese a tener garantías, defensor indígena de San Martín fue asesinado frente a su familia | SPDA Actualidad Ambiental" (in Spanish). Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  16. ^ a b Mendieta, Paola (30 November 2023). "Quinto Inuma: Cuatro disparos acabaron su vida | Inforegion" (in Spanish). Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  17. ^ a b "Talador ilegal pagó S/ 1000 para que asesinen al apu Quinto Inuma". El Foco (in Spanish). 18 February 2024. Retrieved 19 February 2024.
  18. ^ venerocruzpaloma (17 June 2024). "ENCUENTRO DE LÍDERES INDÍGENAS, AFROPERUANOS Y JÓVENES EN CUSCO ELABORÓ UN MANIFIESTO PARA VISIBILIZAR SUS EXIGENCIAS – Ruth Luque" (in Spanish). Retrieved 19 June 2024.
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  • N.º 003-2021-JUS/DGDH, que declara procedente la solicitud de activación del procedimiento de alerta temprana formulada por Manuel Inuma Alvarado y Quinto Inuma Alvarado, apu y vice apu de la comunidad nativa Kichwa de Santa Rosillo.
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