Rigoberto Lima Choc

Rigoberto Lima Choc (* 1986 or 1987; † September 18, 2015 in Sayaxché ) was a Guatemalan conservationist and teacher.

Life

Rigoberto Lima Choc came from an indigenous family. He was the first to uncover the environmental degradation caused by the activities of the palm oil producer Empresa Reforestadora de Palma de Peten (REPSA) on the Río de la Pasión in the department Peten . The local population described the destruction as “ecocide” ( neologism from “ecology” and “homicide”, roughly equivalent to “eco-murder”), because they could no longer fish in the river and drink its water. Human rights activists documented the destruction, called on the authorities to intervene and sued REPSA. In September 2015, a Guemalese court ordered that REPSA had to cease its activities because palm oil production was causing major environmental damage. Lima Choc was able to demonstrate massive fish deaths due to the oil contamination. A day later he was shot dead in front of the courthouse by strangers.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b} Guatemala: matan a tiros a un activista comunitario que denunció un ecocidio. In: bbc.com , September 19, 2015, accessed October 1, 2015 (Spanish).
2. ↑ Guatemala: Killing of Rigoberto Lima Choc and kidnappings of fellow human rights defenders. ( Memento of the original from October 2, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. In: frontlinedefenders.org , September 25, 2015, accessed October 1, 2015. 
3. ↑ Jeff Conant: Environmental Activist Rigoberto Lima Choc Murdered In Guatemala. In: countercurrents.org , September 27, 2015, accessed October 1, 2015.