Jacinto Lima Lucas
Jacinto Lima Lucas is a Quechua-speaking human rigths defender from the campesino community of Tambulla, in the district of Challhuahuacho, Apurímac. In 2015, he served as President of the Tambulla Peasant Community and Vice-President of the Interprovince Struggle Committee, working to advocate for the rights of the communities against the negative impacts of mining in their territories.
Due to his leadership, he was subjected to persecution and criminalisation, and was unjustly sentenced to eight years and eight months in prison. The Court also ordered him, along with a group of other criminalised defenders, to pay a civil reparation fine which collectively amounted to 50,000 Peruvian sol for the State and 88,600 U.S. dollars for the Las Bambas mining company.
While many human rights defenders (HRDs) can operate freely in Peru, those working on the environment, in particular on the environmental and human rights impact of the extractive industry, face harsh repression, including intimidation, smear campaigns, death threats, surveillance, and judicial harassment. Journalists and trade unionists have also been targeted.
