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PBI-Guatemala accompanies Human Rights Law Firm at hearing for youth activist Dulce Archila and Indigenous defender Nanci Sinto

By
Brent Patterson
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The Peace Brigades International-Guatemala Project has posted on social media:

“Last Wednesday [September 2], #PBI accompanied @bufetedh_oficial [the Human Rights Law Firm] at the start of the trial against Dulce María Archila and Nanci Sinto, both accused of the offence of destruction of cultural property. At the hearing, the defence team for both women argued that the evidence gathered by the prosecution had been obtained unlawfully and was not conclusive; they therefore requested an acquittal for both.

The events date back to the peaceful protests on 21 November 2020, when the public demonstrated against the national budget in Congress, which was criticized for cuts to social spending and a lack of transparency in its approval. The police used tear gas to disperse the demonstration, resulting in 14 people being treated in hospital.”

Prensa Comunitaria further reports: “Esteban Celada, the lawyer for [Indigenous Maya Kaqchikel human rights defender] Nanci Sinto, pointed out that the demonstration in which his client and Dulce Archila [who was 19 years old at the time] participated, was a response to the session of Congress on November 18, 2020 when approving the nation’s budget for 2021 amid strong questioning.”

That article adds: “In the defense of Dulce Archila, lawyer Diana Méndez and lawyer Édgar Pérez of the Human Rights Law Firm participate. Méndez contextualizes the facts in which this criminalization process arises. She pointed out that in that year the country was experiencing a context of social conflict from the management of the Covid19 pandemic and the approval of the 2021 budget.”

eP Investiga also reports: “In the statement released prior to the start of the trial, the organizations that support [Indigenous activist] Sinto argue that the process is part of a broader context of criminalization against people who participate in demonstrations and express criticism of the authorities. The pronouncement indicates that the trial must be observed from guarantees such as freedom of assembly and peaceful demonstration, freedom of expression, due process and the right to defense. The organizations also place the case in the context of the difficulties faced by indigenous women to participate in the public and political life of the country. In his opinion, the process raises questions about the State’s obligations in terms of equality, non-discrimination, effective political participation and access to justice.”

The trial will reportedly continue on September 16.

Accompaniment

PBI-Guatemala has accompanied Édgar Pérez Archila since August 2010 and the Human Rights Law Firms since late 2013.

Further reading: PBI-Guatemala accompanies Human Rights Law Firm at hearing for 21-year-old student accused of graffiti inside Congress building (PBI-Canada, April 5, 2023).

Can Peace Brigades International as “a non-violent international presence stop a bullet” and help protect the life of a human rights defender?

By
Brent Patterson
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The narrator in the recently-released 45th anniversary video about the formation of Peace Brigades International (PBI) says: “In 1981 on Grindstone Island, Indigenous territory of the Algonquin peoples, a group of activists met with a radical question: Can a non-violent international presence stop a bullet?”

The theory of “protective accompaniment” asserts that the physical presence of PBI volunteers as “unarmed bodyguards” alongside threatened human rights defenders, organizations and communities reduces the risk of an attack against them because the proximity of volunteers can bring international attention, diplomatic pressure, reputational damage, and negative media exposure.

The Peace Brigades International model of “holistic protective accompaniment” also includes capacity strengthening (notably self-protection strategies and wellbeing/mental health/ trauma support), network building (strengthening global solidarity), defender-led multi-level advocacy (amplifying the voices of defenders, reaching national and international actors), and awareness raising (providing first-hand information from the frontlines of struggles to local and global audiences).

There is also an increased understanding within PBI of the strategic importance of “preventative accompaniment”.

That is the theory that threats and violence against organizations, defenders and communities (ODCs) can be prevented through the tools noted above (capacity strengthening, network building, advocacy and awareness raising about the decisions made in the Global North about the Global South, specifically investment fund decisions on controversial extractive megaprojects and the export of weapons that can be used by the State to repress defenders protesting an injustice.

So, can Peace Brigades International-Canada help “stop a bullet”? Can PBI-Canada help through holistic protective and preventative accompaniment save the life of a human rights defender, for example, in Colombia more than 4,500 kilometres away or the Philippines more than 13,000 kilometres away?

That is our intention and commitment.

Additional reading

–Arms transfers and State violence against human rights defenders: A PBI-Research Unit methodology overview (PBI-Canada, September 1, 2026)

–Peace Brigades International calls on European Council to “oppose increase in the EU defence budget” (PBI-Canada, July 2, 2026)

–Human rights defenders and the Global Affairs Canada 2025 annual report on the export of “strategic goods and technologies” (PBI-Canada, June 3, 2026)

–COPINH coordinator Bertha Zúñiga Cáceres expresses support for the Berta Cáceres Human Rights in Honduras Act (PBI-Canada, March 21, 2021).

Peace Brigades International-Canada present at the 2026 Labour Day march in Ottawa

By
Brent Patterson
-

Labour Day marches took place across the country today including here in Ottawa.

CTV News reports: “One thousand people marched through downtown Ottawa on Labour Day, celebrating workers’ rights while reflecting on a softening local job market and uncertainty surrounding Canada’s ongoing trade dispute with the United States. The annual parade brought together union members, workers, and their families on Monday [September 7].”

The Canadian Labour Congress (CLC), Unifor, the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) posted Labour Day messages here, here and here.

The CLC statement highlights: “This Labour Day, Canada’s unions are standing up for workers’ jobs, livelihoods, and rights as Trump’s trade war creates growing uncertainty for working people across the country.”

Unifor also stated: “Unifor’s national and regional leaders continue to sound the alarm that the tariff crisis is a country-wide fight that demands governments at every level defend Canadian jobs, invest in domestic industrial strategies, and put workers at the centre of the response.”

And the PSAC commented: “Our collective strength is in action at every level of our union.”

Further reading: ITUC report: Trade unionists and workers were killed in Angola, Colombia, Indonesia and Mexico in 2025 (PBI-Canada, June 2, 2026).

Labour for Palestine Ottawa also posted on Instagram: “Through our unions – and with our community allies – workers have the collective power to demand justice for Palestinians and an end to Canada’s complicity with Israel’s genocide in Gaza and its occupation of Palestinian lands.”

Front Line Defenders has documented that at least 74 Palestinian human rights defenders have been killed over the last three years among the estimated 73,658 civilians killed by the Israeli military.

The Canadian Labour Congress has stated: “Canada has a responsibility to stand up for international law, human rights, and the dignity of all people. That means recognizing Palestinian statehood [which Canada has now done], supporting a two-way arms embargo, ensuring the flow of humanitarian aid, and ending trade with illegal Israeli settlements. Workers in Canada expect their government to show leadership rooted in justice, accountability, and peace.”

The CLC has further noted: “The violence and suffering will not end if weapons continue to flow into the region. Canada must support an immediate two-way arms embargo to stop fueling the conflict. We urge the government to work with trade unions representing workers in the impacted arms and technology industries to develop a just transition plan to secure their livelihoods.”

In August 2025, the Unifor Constitutional Convention in Vancouver passed a resolution that endorsed the call by Palestinian trade unions for an arms embargo on Israel.

Peace Brigades International-Canada appreciates the support it receives from the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) Social Justice Fund and the Unifor Social Justice Fund in support of human rights defenders, organizations and communities.

PBI-Canada congratulates Yuli Andrea Velásquez (Fedepesan) and the Corporation for Judicial Freedom (CJL) for winning the National Human Rights Award in Colombia

By
Brent Patterson
-

Photo: Yuli Andrea Velásquez receives award.

El Espectador reports that Yuli Andrea Velásquez and the Corporation for Judicial Freedom (La Corporación Jurídica Libertad) were among the winners today of the 2026 National Human Rights Award at a ceremony at the Teatro Colón in Bogotá.

The article highlights:

“Yuli Andrea Velásquez, Human Rights Defender of the Year. She is an environmental engineer and president of the Federation of Environmental and Tourism Artisanal Fishermen of the Department of Santander (FEDEPESAN). She has transformed the region’s canoes into mobile community monitoring laboratories. From there, she documents illegal dumping, fish kills, and oil spills that threaten the food sovereignty of more than 500 families, combining the ancestral knowledge of riverside communities with technical rigor to demand environmental justice and defend water as a common good.”

Peace Brigades International has accompanied the Regional Corporation for the Defence of Human Rights (Credhos) since 1994. In turn, Credhos accompanies Yuli Velasquez and Fedepesan. PBI-Canada coordinator Brent Patterson first met Credhos in November 2019 (in Toronto when Ivan Madero Vergel came to Canada for an advocacy tour) and Yuli and Fedepesan in June 2022 (in Barrancabermeja).

“For over thirty years, the Corporation for Judicial Freedom (CJL) has established itself as a fundamental pillar in the comprehensive defense of human rights, environmental justice, and peacebuilding with social justice in the territories most affected by the conflict in Antioquia and Chocó. With a multidimensional approach that intertwines strategic litigation, community training, psychosocial support, and grassroots communication, its work encompasses the representation of 380 individual and collective cases that bring to light the suffering of approximately 900 victims of extrajudicial killings, the fight against impunity in emblematic sites of forced disappearance such as La Escombrera and La Esperanza, and the ongoing support of environmental leaders who protect their territories from the pressure of megaprojects.”

Peace Brigades International has accompanied the Corporation for Judicial Freedom since 2000.

Image by the Corporation for Judicial Freedom.

The article further notes: “During the ceremony, the lives of jurist Gustavo Gallón, Father Javier Giraldo, and social leader María Ovidia Palechor, who was murdered on September 1st along with her partner, James Edimer Flor, were also honored.”

Father Javier Giraldo passed away on August 25 of this year.

It was Father Giraldo who invited Peace Brigades International to Colombia that led to a first exploratory mission in 1993. Father Giraldo also participated in the creation of the Inter-Church Commission for Justice and Peace in 1988.

Peace Brigades International has accompanied the Inter-Church Commission for Justice and Peace since 1994.

Video still of Father Javier Giraldo.

And the Association for Research and Social Action (Nomadesc) posted on Instagram:

“WE WILL NOT NORMALISE GENOCIDE; WE WILL CONTINUE TO STRIVE FOR DIGNITY

María and James taught us not to give up, to continue thinking differently from those who bring about death, dispossession and destruction. We will continue to defend life, the land and the rights of the peoples. We join hands and hearts with our comrades, children, young men and young women of the social movement in south-western Colombia. Here we are; here we remain today, and more than ever we will turn solidarity into a song of hope.”

Peace Brigades International has accompanied Nomadesc since 2011 and its president Berenice Celeita since 1999. PBI-Canada coordinator Brent Patterson first met with Berenice and Nomadesc in July 2022.

Yanakuna Indigenous leader María Ovidia Palechor and peasant leader James Flor were killed in their home on September 1 in the district of La Pedregosa, municipality of Cajibío, Cauca. Infobae reports: “With the violent deaths of Palechor and Flor, Indepaz registered a total of 103 community and indigenous leaders murdered in the national territory so far this year, representing an average of one case every 2.3 days in the country.”

Protest planned at Canada Investment Summit that could advance major projects opposed by Indigenous land and environmental defenders

By
Brent Patterson
-

Video still: The Canada Investment Summit will be held at the Four Seasons Hotel in downtown Toronto.

The Canada Investment Summit promises to catalyze investment “to help move projects forward” in conjunction with the government’s Major Projects Office established to “accelerate projects by creating a single set of conditions, thereby reducing the approval timeline for projects of national interest to a maximum of two years”.

CTV News journalist Judy Trinh reports that a “final look book” will be sent to the “100 large state and institutional investors” who represent “more than $100 trillion” who have been invited at the Four Seasons Hotel in downtown Toronto for the “Canada Investment Summit” on September 14-15.

She further reports Finance Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne confirming the Churchill Falls and Gull Island hydroelectric project along with critical minerals and AI data centres will be pitched to the investors.

Trinh adds: “Industry sources have told CTV News that each province has submitted a list of potential projects, most of which involve infrastructure expansion such as ports, or resource development.”

She has also reported that themes at the summit include “Delivering on Canada’s Nation Building Agenda”, that “the projects on offer include hydroelectricity projects, natural resource development such as oil and gas, critical minerals, ports and data centres” and that the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) will “curate” the list of projects submitted by provinces and territories into a final “deal book”.

Trinh notes: “Prime Minister Mark Carney has set the ambitious goal of ‘catalyzing’ $1 trillion in investment over the next five years. That will involve pitching major projects, and convincing investors to write some big cheques.”

The major projects

This summer, Global News commented: “A central theme of Carney’s leadership over the last year and a half has been about making Canada more attractive to businesses and investment — creating a Major Projects Office (MPO) to stickhandle files of national significance, reducing regulatory burdens, aggressively seeking out new trade partnerships and jettisoning environmental protections.”

Bloomberg News confirms that the Major Projects Office (MPO) is involved in the organizing of the investment summit.

In September 2025, Prime Minister Carney announced five priority major projects including “LNG Canada Phase 2, Kitimat, British Columbia”. Then in November 2025, the prime minister announced another six major projects including “Ksi Lisims LNG – Pearse Island, British Columbia” along with “the 800-kilometre Prince Rupert Gas Transmission Project to supply feed gas for liquefaction, and a 95-kilometre electrical transmission line to supply electricity to the facility.”

Image: “Projects referred to the MPO”.

These major projects are opposed by Indigenous land and environmental defenders on Wet’suwet’en, Gitxsan and Gitanyow territories.

PBI-Canada observes call from Chief Na’Moks, Gwii Lok’im Gibuu and Katisha Paul against EDC financing of megaprojects (April 14, 2026)

The investors

Trinh reports there will be thirty-three investors from the United States, nine from the United Kingdom, and eight from France among the attendees.

The UAE and Norway will also be present.

She notes: “In November 2025, during a visit to the United Arab Emirates, the leaders of the UAE’s sovereign wealth funds committed to investing $70 billion in Canada’s critical minerals, energy, ports and AI, but no specific projects were named. Four state-owned funds from the UAE will be in Toronto. So will the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund from Norway.”

The protest

The Financial Post has reported that the Canada Investment Summit “kicks off with a gala dinner on Sept. 14, followed by a full day of meetings and on-stage programming at the Four Seasons in Toronto.”

Social movements are planning to assemble in protest the evening of that gala dinner at the hotel on Yorkville Avenue.

We continue to follow this.

Protest poster.

International Observation and Solidarity Mission (with PBI) to release report on human rights situation in Ecuador on September 10

By
Brent Patterson
-

Video still from the “CANSEC is Global” promotional video for the CANSEC arms show in Ottawa. “We’ve had the Ecuadorean minister on our booth.”

Canal 8 Mar del Plata (in Argentina) reports that there will be a public presentation of the report “Attacks and criminalization against civil society in a context of militarization and extractivism in Ecuador” on September 10.

That article adds: “The mission presented in the report is made up of organisations such as CIVICUS, Front Line Defenders, Peace Brigades International, OMCT-FIDH and other international entities dedicated to the monitoring and protection of human rights defenders. The meeting in Quito will seek to discuss the consequences of the advance of security policies and exploitation of resources on social organizations, communities and human rights defenders in Ecuador.”

Deutsche Welle has previously reported that Peace Brigades International, Front Line Defenders, the World Organization Against Torture (OMCT), Civicus, 11.11.11, and other international human rights organizations participated in an observation mission in Ecuador that took place from March 2-5, 2026.

DW highlights this excerpt of the statement (on March 6) from the mission: “The implementation of a security-type policy and the normalization of states of emergency and surveillance, as well as militarization, under the argument of facing a serious structural security crisis, is part of the deeply worrying panorama that we observe.”

Threats against human rights defenders

Global Witness has documented the murders of land and environmental defenders in Ecuador including Alberto Quiñónez, Didson De la Cruz and Alejandro Lapo Tandazo (in 2024), Eduardo Mendúa (in 2023), Alba Bermeo Puin (in 2022) and Andrés Durazno, Nange Yeti and Víctor Enrique Guaillas Gutama (in 2021).

Notably, CIVICUS has noted: “On 5th October 2024, EHRD [environmental human rights defender] Alejandro Lapo Tandazo was gunned down in Patria Nueva, Sucumbíos province, Ecuador. Lapo, who worked with the Scalabrinian Mission and belonged to the community platform opposing the operations of the Canadian company Gran Tierra Energy, had denounced the company’s non-compliance with agreements and defended environmental and community rights.”

Canada and Ecuador

CBC News has reported: “There are 15 Canadian mining companies operating in Ecuador, with some facing allegations of abuses and working in ecologically sensitive areas, according to Mining Watch Canada.”

And Aidan Gilchrist-Blackwood of the Canadian Network for Corporate Accountability commented in May 2026: “Canadian mining and oil companies in Ecuador are linked to serious human rights violations, including poisoning freshwater sources and trampling Indigenous rights.”

On July 24, 2026, Canada and Ecuador signed the Canada-Ecuador Free Trade Agreement (FTA) that will be implemented following domestic ratification processes.

That same month, MiningWatch Canada commented: “Canada and Ecuador have negotiated a free trade agreement that is fiercely opposed by Indigenous Peoples, trade justice advocates, water defenders and human rights and environmental justice organizations in Ecuador.”

Accompaniment

Peace Brigades International and the other groups in the observation mission pledged to “continue to accompany, monitor and raise awareness internationally about the situation of human rights and the rights of nature in Ecuador.”

We continue to follow this.

Additional reading

–After PBI-Colombia visits Ecuador with observation mission, human rights complaint filed at the UN against military helicopter attack on farmhouse (PBI-Canada, April 26, 2026)

–PBI expresses concern about the repression of human rights defenders in Ecuador, Canadian groups call for “Voices at Risk” to be implemented (PBI-Canada, March 11, 2026)

–Indigenous land defenders from Ecuador face the risk of reprisal after speaking against Canadian mining companies (PBI-Canada, October 4, 2024)

–Despite human rights violations against Indigenous peoples and journalists, CANSEC promotes participation of Ecuadorean military at arms show (PBI-Canada, May 28, 2023).

PBI-Colombia accompanies the Inter-Church Commission for Justice and Peace to assess earthquake damage in Buenaventura

By
Brent Patterson
-

The Peace Brigades International-Colombia Project has posted on social media:

“We accompanied the Inter-Church Commission for Justice and Peace (@justiciapazcolombia) on a tour of areas affected by the earthquake in Buenaventura, with the aim of assessing the damage and hearing first-hand about the communities’ needs. The visit included the Lleras neighbourhood and the Puente Nayero Humanitarian Centre, as well as rural communities in the Bajo San Juan area: the Wounaan Indigenous Reserve and the Community Council of the Black Community of Cabeceras.

During the tour, donations from a Mexican organization were also handed over, intended to support the affected communities. Today, solidarity and collective commitment are needed, but above all, an effective response from state institutions, which have a responsibility to guarantee care, protection and the rights of those living in these territories.

Through our support work, we reaffirm our commitment to defending human rights, protecting communities and creating conditions that allow their voices to be heard.”

Just three weeks ago, CBC News reported: “A powerful 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck western Colombia on Monday [August 10], killing at least 111 people, damaging hundreds of buildings and leaving many trapped under debris while their loved ones and rescue workers searched through rubble.”

Last week, the United Nations stated that the earthquake had “left 331 people dead, 4,449 injured and 219 missing”.

And Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) notes: “Although the earthquake [three weeks ago] severely affected cities such as Cali and Pereira, the most critical gaps remain in areas that have long faced poverty, barriers to healthcare, and the presence of armed groups. In parts of Quibdó and Medio Baudó in Chocó, as well as Buenaventura in Valle del Cauca, where conditions were already precarious before the disaster, the earthquake has further exacerbated existing needs.”

El Mundo further specifies: “Buenaventura, a district in the department of Valle del Cauca (southwest), was one of the areas most affected by the 7.4 magnitude earthquake that shook Colombia on August 10 and left 26 dead, 476 injured, 38,175 people affected, 9,362 homes damaged and 4,265 uninhabitable, a scenario that aggravates the conditions of vulnerability in which a large part of its 320,000 inhabitants live.”

That article notes that “FARC and National Liberation Army (ELN) dissidents operate [in Buenaventura], as well as the criminal gangs Los Espartanos and Los Shottas, among other groups.”

Immediately after the earthquake, Global Affairs Canada posted on social media: “Canada is deeply saddened by the loss of lives and devastation caused by the earthquake in #Colombia. Our heart is with all those affected. We are monitoring the situation and stand ready to provide assistance as appropriate.”

On August 26, the Government of Canada announced: “Canada is providing more than $2 million in funding to support emergency relief efforts in response to the earthquake. …This funding for emergency response builds on the almost $8.5 million in funding for ongoing humanitarian assistance that was allocated by Canada earlier this year to respond to ongoing humanitarian needs in Colombia.”

The National Unit for Disaster Risk Management (UNGRD) in Colombia appears to have prioritized international support for the search and rescue of victims from the United States, El Salvador, Ecuador, and Israel.

We continue to follow this.

Additional reading: PBI-Canada joins with PBI-Colombia in expressing our full solidarity with those impacted by the earthquake this week (August 12, 2026).

PBI-Guatemala accompanies family of Luz Leticia at court hearing, verdict on her forcible disappearance expected on September 17

By
Brent Patterson
-

The Peace Brigades International-Guatemala Project has posted on social media:

“On Monday and Tuesday [August 31 and September 1, 2026], #PBI accompanied the family of #LuzLeticia.

At Monday’s hearing, the public prosecutor presented her reply to the defence lawyer’s closing arguments, while on Tuesday the defence lawyer presented his counter-reply. Likewise, the two joint plaintiffs in the case addressed their plea to the court: ‘We demand justice for the disappearance of our sister Luz Leticia!’

The court has scheduled a hearing for Thursday 17 September to deliver its verdict.”

Who was Luz Leticia?

Verdad Justicia has posted: “Luz Leticia was born on November 22, 1957, the same day she was detained-disappeared, when she was 25 years old. Her family remembers her as a woman, she was a very intelligent, affectionate woman, such a beautiful smile and a hard worker.”

Mirtala has shared in an interview with El Salto that Luz Leticia was a member of Nuestro Movimiento (Our Movement). She explains: “The organization originated as a militant guerrilla group whose goal was to defend the people against poverty, abuses of power, and the actions of the security forces.”

The state agent accused in her disappearance

On the accused Juan Francisco Cifuentes Cano, Prensa Libre also reports: “Cifuentes Cano was the director of a police division and worked closely with the Army in counterinsurgency operations during the de facto government of the dictator Efraín Ríos Montt (1982-1983), as explained by the Prosecutor’s Office before the Fifth Criminal Court of First Instance. The ex-commander is accused of the forced disappearance of the university students Luz Hernández and Ana López, who 40 years later have still not been located.”

Judge expected to issue sentence soon

On August 13, 2026, Prensa Comunitaria reported: “The oral and public trial for the disappearance of university student Luz Leticia Hernández Agustín, 44 years ago, which is taking place in the Eighth Criminal Court against Juan Francisco Cifuentes Cano, reaches its final phase. On Tuesday, August 18, the last witness will be heard by videoconference, then the legal representation of Luz Leticia’s family, the prosecution and the defense of the accused will issue their conclusions before the judges issue a sentence.”

PBI accompaniment

PBI-Guatemala has previously posted ten slides – that can be read here – including this one that says: “The Luz Leticia case has finally reached the courts thanks to the tremendous efforts of her family: ‘Our sister’s despair cut deep into our family, and in order to heal we need to recover Luz Leticia’s remains and ensure that her killers are brought to justice once and for all.’ PBI continues to support Valentina, Marta and Mirtala, Luz Leticia’s mother and sisters.”

ARCAH to convene virtual meeting on September 5 on water privatization in Tegucigalpa and Comayaguela by Mekorot

By
Brent Patterson
-

Christopher Castillo, the coordinator of the Honduran Alternative for Community and Environmental Vindication (ARCAH) has posted on social media:

“We are calling on the people of Tegucigalpa and Comayaguela to attend an urgent meeting on the issue of water this Saturday at 5.00 pm.

Emergency meeting on water privatization in Tegucigalpa and Comayaguela, Saturday 5 September · 5–6.30 pm. Check the details and confirm your attendance at https://calendar.app.google/qg17RMvs2FRJvYUm6

Please confirm your attendance in the comments or by calling +504 8923-5604.

#humanrights #water #honduras #tegus #environment”

In the video with the social media post, Castillo says:

“Hello, I am Christopher Castillo from ARCAH. On this occasion, we want to put an alert and at the same time a complaint for the attempt to prioritize the water that is being given in Tegucigalpa and Comayaguela from the income and installation of an Israeli company called Mekorot. In that sense, we are calling on the Patronato Juntas de Agua, the general population of Tegucigalpa and Comayaguela, to a first informational virtual meeting for this Saturday, September 5 at 5 pm. Water is a human right that we have to defend. This is not about a political party or a party force. It is about the interests of the population, our rights as a people and the situation that we have to move forward autonomously as a people. Water is a human right.”

On July 20, 2026, Criterio.hn reported: “The Honduran government is exploring an agreement with Israel’s state-owned water company. Mekorot’s expansion in Latin America has been accompanied by questions about its role in the occupied Palestinian territories and its link to Israeli water diplomacy.”

That article continues: “With an official presence in Argentina, Mexico and the Dominican Republic through projects or consultancies for water management, Mekorot has managed to position itself in the region despite its questionable role in the extreme rationing of water in occupied Palestinian territories.”

“Mekorot’s arrival in Latin America has already generated controversy. In Chile, an agreement between the Israeli state company and the Corporación Desarrolla Biobío was questioned by former regional councilor Javier Sandoval, who denounced a lack of transparency about the use of public resources and asked to suspend the project because he considered financing Mekorot incompatible with the complaints about its actions in the occupied Palestinian territories.”

Criterio.hn also reports: “The Palestinian Water Justice Alliance singled out Mekorot for using water as a weapon against the Palestinian people, by operating wells in the West Bank to provide water to illegal Israeli settlements on Palestinian territory. In addition, it denounced the confiscation of water from Palestinian aquifers, contributing to the destruction of Palestinian farmers’ livelihoods and the increase in diseases. With this track record, would Honduras be willing to hand over a fundamental national security resource to another nation’s state-owned enterprise? Even a country that until June 2026, an independent UN commission determined that it continues to commit genocide and heinous crimes by deliberately targeting Palestinian children?”

On August 31, 2026, Reporteros de Investigación further reported: “According to the TRT Español report, Mekorot’s expansion in Latin America would follow a pattern that begins with governments that, under the argument of modernizing water management, establish cooperation agreements without citizen consultations; subsequently, these processes would move forward without competitive tenders or sufficient transparency about their conditions and, finally, the projects would be implemented with incomplete socio-environmental studies, which could leave their possible impacts on communities and ecosystems out of the public debate. Countries such as Mexico, Colombia, Chile and the Dominican Republic have established new agreements with Mekorot to manage water resources in most of these countries.”

Accompaniment

The Honduran Alternative for Community and Environmental Vindication (Alternativa de Reivindicación Comunitaria y Ambientalista de Honduras, ARCAH) is a space for community articulation and an anti-capitalist, anti-racist, anti-patriarchal, anti-colonialist and anti-classist social movement that seeks to defend territories and common goods from any project that threatens the peace and cosmovision of communities.

Peace Brigades International has accompanied ARCAH since September 2022.

PBI-Canada coordinator Brent Patterson met with Christopher in Tegucigalpa on October 28, 2024, then again on March 3, 2026.

More about that most recent visit at PBI-Canada and PBI-Honduras visit with ARCAH and learn about the struggle to save the Choluteca River.

Peace Brigades International marks the 45th anniversary of its formation with a 5-minute video

By
Brent Patterson
-

To see the new video marking the 45th anniversary of the founding of Peace Brigades International as a global organization on September 4, 1981, near Ottawa on Grindstone Island on Algonquin territory, click on any of the links below:

Instagram

Facebook

LinkedIn

As noted in the video: “In 1981 on Grindstone Island, Indigenous territory of the Algonquin peoples, a group of activists met with a radical question: Can a non-violent international presence stop a bullet?”

You may also be interested in this interview PBI-Canada did with Daniel Clark, one of the eleven founders of PBI that day in 1981.

We also recall with pleasure the privilege we had of our meetings with PBI co-founder Hans Sinn at his home and his reflections about Grindstone Island.

The PBI 45th anniversary video highlights the central role of PBI’s physical presence at frontline struggles.

On this anniversary we also share these articles and photos of just a few of the PBI-Canada visits in recent years with accompanied organizations, defenders and communities.

Wet’suwet’en territory, November 2021.

Colombia, June-July 2022.

Guatemala, May 2023.

Honduras, October 2024.

Haida Gwaii, Wet’suwet’en, Gitanyow and Gitxsan territories, June 2025.

Wet’suwet’en territory, October 2025.

Mexico, February 2026.

Honduras, March 2026.

You can follow the social media posts from PBI-Canada on Instagram, Facebook, Bluesky and X.

“Together, we plant seeds. Every act of care, resistance or collective dreaming is part of a broader vision.”

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