Mexico’s Deadly Toll on Environmental Defenders Exposed

At least 35 women environmental defenders were killed in Mesoamerica between 2012 and 2024, primarily in Honduras, Mexico, and Guatemala, according to a report by the Mesoamerican Initiative of Women Human Rights Defenders (IM-Defensoras). The findings highlight escalating violence against activists opposing extractive industries and large-scale infrastructure projects.

A Decade of Targeted Violence

The report, titled “The Land for Those Who Work and Defend It: 10+ Years of Attacks Against Women Defenders of Land, Territory, and Natural Resources in Mesoamerica (2012-2024),” documents 9,629 violent acts against women environmental activists across the region. Mexico accounted for 13.4% of these cases, ranking second only to Honduras, where 62% of attacks occurred.

Between 2022 and 2024 alone, during the administration of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, 860 aggressions were recorded against Mexican land defenders resisting extractive projects. The report specifically cites conflicts tied to the Tren Maya railway, a massive pig farm in Yucatán, the Interoceanic Corridor in Oaxaca, Bonafont’s water extraction in Puebla, and real estate developments nationwide.

Fatal Consequences of Resistance

Since the 2016 murder of Honduran activist Berta Cáceres, 22 women land defenders have been killed in Mesoamerica—six in Mexico, nine in Honduras, three in Guatemala, two each in El Salvador and Nicaragua. The report identifies three spikes in violence: 2017 (following Cáceres’ assassination), 2020 (amid pandemic-era authoritarian measures), and 2022 (marked by militarized territorial disputes).

IM-Defensoras links the violence to “extractivist capitalism” reinforced by structural racism, classism, and patriarchy. Most victims were Indigenous, Garifuna, or Afro-descendant women from rural communities excluded from land ownership decisions.

Regional Patterns of Repression

The study notes a 160% surge in collective attacks against defenders in 2023 compared to 2022, with 86% of 2024 cases involving excessive force by authorities or armed groups. It references Global Witness’s 2023 findings placing Mexico, Honduras, Guatemala, and Nicaragua among the top 10 deadliest countries for environmental activists.

Central America accounted for 80.2% of socio-environmental conflicts from 1990–2020, including mining disputes and land-use clashes. Mexico leads with 211 documented environmental conflicts, followed by Guatemala (31), Honduras (24), and Nicaragua (12). Mining concessions cover 23% of Nicaragua’s territory, 11% of Mexico’s, and 4.84% of Guatemala’s.

Hard-Won Victories

Despite repression, women-led movements have achieved policy reversals, including:

• El Salvador’s 2017 metallic mining ban (later overturned in 2024)
• Honduras’ cancellation of Economic Development Zones (ZEDEs)
• Nicaragua’s suspension of the Interoceanic Canal
• Mexico’s 2022 termination of the Gunaa Sicarú wind project

The report underscores ongoing risks as governments prioritize post-pandemic economic recovery through resource extraction.