On 27 April 2010, human rights defenders in El Frente de Mujeres Defensoras de la Pachamama (Women Defenders of Mother Earth) in the parish of Molleturo in Cuenca, Ecuador, including the organisation's president, Ms Rosío Pérez, were threatened and intimidated in apparent retaliation for complaints they had filed with the Ministry of the Environment and the Agencia Desconcentrada de Regulación y Control Minero - ADRCM (the Decentralised Agency for Regulation and Control of Mining) on behalf of residents of Piedra Azul regarding the possibility of illegal mining taking place and affecting water supplies in the area.

Further Information

On 27 April 2010, at approximately 10:45 am, a man claiming to be a local mining licensee entered the offices of El Frente de Mujeres Defensoras de la Pachamama in Molleturo and demanded to speak with Rosío Pérez regarding complaints which they had lodged with the Ministry of the Environment and the ADRCM on behalf of residents in the Piedra Azul area regarding possible illegal mining operations.

Upon being informed by his interlocutor, Ms Rosa Gutama, that Rosío Pérez was unavailable, the man then demanded copies of documents relating to the complaints so that he could identify those who had brought the issues to the organisation's attention and initiate legal proceedings against them. The man regularly raised his voice in order to intimidate Rosa Gutama, and stated his intention to take legal action against Rosío Pérez personally.

On various occasions during the encounter, the man referred to copies of the complaints which El Frente de Mujeres Defensoras de la Pachamama had lodged with the Ministry of the Environment, and that he had on his person, stating that they had been sent to him via fax as soon as they had been lodged.

Despite being advised that any legal action he intended to take would have to be against the organisation rather than any individual, the man insisted that he intended to take personal legal action against the individuals on behalf of whom El Frente de Mujeres Defensoras de la Pachamama had lodged the complaint and, upon leaving, stated that “this won't end like this”.

On 5 and 8 April 2010, El Frente de Mujeres Defensoras de la Pachamama had contacted the ADRCM and the local office of the Ministry of the Environment respectively, informing them of complaints by local residents regarding the presence of miners in the area who were reportedly working illegally.

They claimed that the mining operations are affecting local water sources, and thus solicited information concerning local mining licensees and their legal status, calling for an inspection of the area.

Furthermore, El Frente de Mujeres Defensoras de la Pachamama had been informed by residents of Piedra Azul that illegal miners in the area are often accompanied by armed personnel and, thus, the locals who brought the issue to their attention requested that their anonymity by safeguarded.

Front Line is deeply concerned by the leaking of the documents from the Ministry of the Environment or the ADRCM, which do not appear to have been passed on as a result of solicitation but rather upon personal initiative and without authorisation, which may suggest that elements therein are actively working in favour of mining interests, legal or otherwise, in the area and against concerned residents.

Furthermore, Front Line is concerned as to the true motive for the attempts to identify those in the Piedra Azul area on whose behalf El Frente de Mujeres Defensoras de la Pachamama lodged the complaints and, thus, for the physical and psychological integrity of these individuals.