Lesbia Urquía

Lesbia Yaneth Urquía (1967 - 6 July 2016) was a Honduran human rights activist. She was an advocate for the environment.[1][2][3]

Lesbia Urquía
Born
Lesbia Yaneth Urquía

1967
La Esperanza, Honduras
Died6 July 2016(2016-07-06) (aged 48–49)
Marcala, Honduras
Cause of deathAssassination
NationalityHonduran
Occupation(s)Environmentalist, indigenous rights activist

Biography

Lesbia Urquía was a community leader of the Council of Popular and Indigenous Organizations of Honduras (COPINH), the same organization which Berta Cáceres belonged to. Urquía was opposed to the privatizations of the rivers, because they are diverted and stop giving water to the indigenous communities. In addition, dams promote the deforestation of these areas by companies and affect the flora and fauna of these lands. She had fought the construction of a hydroelectric dam of international investors in La Paz. The Lencas considered that the dams would affect their access to water, food and medical supplies, so that their traditional way of life would be jeopardized.[4] The construction of this dam caused the Gualcarque River to stop supplying them with water.[5]

On 6 July 2016, authorities found Urquía's body in the city of Marcala, near the landfill Mata Mula.[6] She had been killed by two hit men with a machete to her head.[5] The Council held the government responsible for her death, specifically the president of the National Party and her husband.[2]

Urquía had three children and was 49 years of age at the time of her death.[7]

References
  1. Redacción (8 July 2016). "El brutal asesinato en Honduras de Lesbia Urquía, activista ambientalista compañera de la fallecida Berta Cáceres". BBC News Mundo. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
  2. Ahrens, Jan Martínez (8 July 2016). "Asesinada en Honduras otra dirigente ecologista, compañera de Berta Cáceres". El País (in Spanish). ISSN 1134-6582. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
  3. Gómez-Barris, Macarena (3 November 2017). The Extractive Zone: Social Ecologies and Decolonial Perspectives. Duke University Press. ISBN 9780822372561. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
  4. Malkin, Elisabeth; Arce, Alberto (3 March 2016). "Berta Cáceres, indigenous activist, is killed in Honduras". The New York Times. Retrieved 21 August 2017.
  5. Berumen, Sergio A. (19 January 2018). ¿Cañones o mantequilla? Respuestas de economía para no economistas (in Spanish). ESIC. ISBN 9788417129460. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
  6. Janssen, Sarah (6 December 2016). The World Almanac and Book of Facts 2017. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 9781600572074. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
  7. Verbos, Amy Klemm; Henry, Ella; Peredo, Ana Maria (20 July 2017). Indigenous Aspirations and Rights: The Case for Responsible Business and Management. Routledge. ISBN 9781351270168. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
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