Judge dismisses the criminal case of environmental defenders protecting Chaparrí
On 8 April 2025, the Second Unipersonal Criminal Court of Chiclayo dismissed the criminal case against six environmental defenders members of the Frente de Defensa Salvemos Chaparrí (Save Chaparrí Defense Front), based on the grounds that the statute of limitations had expired.
Frente de Defensa Salvemos Chaparrí (Save Chaparrí Defense Front), is an organisation of members of Santa Catalina de Chongoyape community and of Asociación para la Conservación de la Naturaleza y Turismo Sostenible Chaparri - ACOTURCH (Association for the Conservation of Nature and Sustainable Tourism) dedicated to the defense and conservation of the natural reserve "Área de Conservación Privada Chaparrí". The Chaparrí reserve, located between Lambayeque and Cajamarca regions, was created in 2001 as the first Private Conservation Area (ACP) of Peru, to protect more than 34 thousand hectares of tropical dry forests and endangered animals, such as the spectacled bear and the Aliblanca turkey. These vast natural reserve is under threat by "land dealers's" the illegal activities, such as usurpation, occupation of land and fraudulent change of land use, which often result in violent confrontations.
Community members part of the Defense Front have denounced that, over the last few years, they have been targets of harassment, verbal and physical violence, monitoring, arbitrary separation from the community and death threats. On 30 December 2017, Lieutenant Governor José Napoleón Tarrillo Astonitas, a community leader in El Mirador village who opposed the entry of people foreign to the community, was murdered in his home. After the murder of José Tarrillo, the threats and harassment against the members of the Defense Front have increased.
On 8 April 2025, the Second Unipersonal Criminal Court of Chiclayo dismissed the criminal case against six environmental defenders members of the Frente de Defensa Salvemos Chaparrí (Save Chaparrí Defense Front), based on the grounds that the statute of limitations had expired.
Hermenegildo Torres Perales, Porfirio Torres Perales, Segundo Fabián Culqui Mendoza, Dociteo Tafur Díaz, Américo Laboreano Ramos and Juan de Dios Carrasco Fernández are members of the Campesino community Muchik Santa Catalina de Chongoyape, and the Asociación para la Conservación de la Naturaleza y Turismo Sostenible Chaparri (Chaparri Association for the Conservation of Nature and Sustainable Tourism). They are also members of the Frente de Defensa Salvemos Chaparrí, an organisation dedicated to the defence and conservation of the "Área de Conservación Privada Chaparrí" natural reserve located between the Lambayeque and Cajamarca regions. The reserve was created in 2001 as the first Private Conservation Area (ACP) of Peru, to protect more than 34 thousand hectares of tropical dry forests and endangered animals, such as the spectacled bear and the Aliblanca turkey.
In January 2021, the Specialised Provincial Prosecutor's Office for Environmental Matters of Lambayeque filed an accusation request against the six defenders, based on unsubstantiated charges of "altering the environment or landscape" of the ACP Chaparrí. These accusations took place within a context of ongoing harassment, surveillance and violence against the defenders, who had been targeted by criminal groups dedicated to land grabbing as well as groups that had occupied that land for private interests such as monoculture farms. The defenders also faced threats and reprisals due to their opposition to the construction of the “La Montería” dam within the ecological reserve of Chaparrí, promoted by the Regional Government of Lambayeque and the Ministry of Agriculture. This project was intended to significantly reduce the portion of the territory allocated to the nature reserve, damaging its ecosystem and putting the Lambayeque population's access to water sources at risk. As a response to insecurity and reprisals faced by the defenders, in March 2018, the Interior Ministry had granted protection measures to the members of the Frente de Defensa Salvemos Chaparrí, which were never effectively implemented. Front Line Defenders has reported further attacks against other members, including against Edivar Juan Carrasco Vásquez on 27 March 2021, whose risk situation remains active.
Finally, four years after the accusations were presented by the Specialised Provincial Prosecutor's Office for Environmental Matters, on 8 April 2025, the Second Unipersonal Criminal Court of Chiclayo declared the criminal action against the six defenders to be barred by the statute of limitations, for which the Prosecutor had been seeking four years of imprisonment. Despite the favourable ruling, the judge also ordered the defenders to pay civil reparations of five thousand soles each. The legal defence have filed an appeal against this order.
F ront Line Defenders welcomes the decision to cease the criminalisation of Hermenegildo Torres Perales, Porfirio Torres Perales, Segundo Fabián Culqui Mendoza, Dociteo Tafur Díaz, Américo Laboreano Ramos and Juan de Dios Carrasco Fernández, as the organisation believes that the prosecution was an act of reprisal for their environmental rights work in Peru. Front Line Defenders reiterates its deep concern over the criminalisation of campesino and indigenous leaders and human rights defenders in Peru and the undue use of the justice system to restrict the defence of human rights, environment and territories. Front Line Defenders urges the State of Peru to address the risk situation that defenders in the Frente de Defensa Salvemos Chaparrí still face, including those faced by Edivar Juan Carrasco Vásquez, as well as take all necessary measures to ensure the judicial system is no longer misused to restrict their human rights work.
On 12 August 2022, a public trial will be held against six environmental rights defenders and members of the Frente de Defensa Salvemos Chaparrí (Save Chaparrí Defense Front) on the unsubstantiated charge of "altering the environment or landscape". The trial will take place in the Second Supraprovincial Unipersonal Criminal Court of Chiclayo in the Lambayeque region and could result in a four-year prison sentence.
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Hermenegildo Torres Perales, Porfirio Torres Perales, Segundo Fabián Culqui Mendoza, Dociteo Tafur Díaz, Américo Laboreano Ramos and Juan de Dios Carrasco Fernández are members of the Campesino community Muchik Santa Catalina de Chongoyape, the Frente de Defensa Salvemos Chaparrí and the Asociación para la Conservación de la Naturaleza y Turismo Sostenible Chaparri (Association for the Conservation of Nature and Sustainable Tourism) dedicated to the conservation and protection of the nature reserve "Área de Conservación Privada Chaparrí". The Chaparri Reserve was recognised in 2001 as the first Private Conservation Area (ACP) in Peru, with the aim of protecting more than 34,000 hectares of tropical dry forests and endangered animals, such as the Andean bear and the white-winged turkey.
On 27 January 2021, the six defenders learned through the local press and social networks that the Specialised Provincial Prosecutor's Office for Environmental Matters of Lambayeque had opened an investigation against them.
The criminalisation of the six defenders is part of an alarming pattern of violence against the legitimate work of the Frente de Defensa Salvemos Chaparrí and the Comunidad Campesina Muchik Santa Catalina de Chongoyape. Over the years, members of the community have reported being targets of harassment, verbal and physical violence, surveillance, arbitrary separation from the community and death threats by organised criminal groups dedicated to land grabbing, in retaliation for their opposition to the interests of those seeking to building dams in protected territory.
Despite the fact that since March 2018 the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Justice recognised the defence work of the members of the Frente de Defensa Salvemos Chaparrí and granted personal protection measures in their favour, environmental defenders continue to face a serious escalation of risks in retaliation for their work from unknown entities. There has been no effective implementation of protection measures or investigation into those behind the attacks.
Front Line Defenders expresses deep concern at the upcoming trial of environmental rights defenders Hermenegildo Torres Perales, Porfirio Torres Perales, Segundo Fabián Culqui Mendoza, Dociteo Tafur Díaz, Américo Laboreano Ramos and Juan de Dios Carrasco Fernández and condemns the criminalisation process against them.
Front Line Defenders believes that the criminalisation of environmental rights defenders seeks to hinder their valuable work in defence of environmental and land rights in the country and reiterates its concern at the discouraging message this sends to those carrying out human rights work in Peru.
Front Line Defenders urges the Peruvian State to take all necessary measures to protect the safety of the human rights defenders and to ensure that the judicial system is not misused as a tool to delegitimise and obstruct the work of environmental and land rights defenders in Peru.
