Imagine being arrested for defending your community's rights or facing threats for protecting the environment. This is the reality for many in Peru and El Salvador, where crackdowns on community voices are intensifying.
“Defending fundamental human rights requires courage and determination (…) Let us pray that those that risk their lives fighting for fundamental rights in dictatorships, in authoritarian regimes and also in democracies in crisis, so they can see their sacrifice and their work give abundant fruit.”
The alarming trend
CAFOD partner organisations in Peru and El Salvador are raising alarms about crackdowns on community voices. Governments in these countries are increasingly restricting the ability of civil society organisations and citizens to operate freely, advocate for change and participate in democratic processes.
Measures include:
new restrictive laws
public stigmatisation
direct threats
weakening of democratic institutions.
These shifts reflect a broader pattern of growing democratic backsliding in Latin America. Those who defend human rights, the environment and the dignity of marginalised communities face growing threats.
Why this matters
For CAFOD and our partner organisations, this matters deeply: our capacity to help those in need depends on the ability of affected communities, Church actors and local organisations to operate, speak out, organise and hold power to account. When civic space is restricted, justice, peace and sustainable development are all at risk.
El Salvador: States of exception, curtailing rights and new 'foreign agents' law
On 20 May 2025, the Salvadorian Congress passed a new 'foreign agents' law, further tightening the restrictions on civil society imposed since the start of the state of emergency in March 2022. It will also impose a 30% tax on donations to non-governmental organisations.
CAFOD’s partners believe this new law will increase state control and monitoring of their activities, while limiting their funding and weakening communities’ efforts to assert their rights. The UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders stated that this measure would be “contrary to the right to freedom of association and represents further stigmatisation of civil society, falling outside democratic standards”.
Legal safeguards in El Salvador, including the right to defence and due process, have been suspended for more than three years, leading to over 85,500 detentions and around 7,000 arbitrary arrests. Recent US-El Salvador co-operation on deportations has further encouraged the authoritarian practices of President Bukele’s government.
While many Salvadorians believe the state of emergency has improved public security, it has also worsened the persecution of human rights defenders, activists and journalists. Reported attacks against them rose to 533 in 2024 - a 136% increase from the previous year. The government is criminalising individuals and groups who document and expose human rights violations and corruption in the country.
One of the emblematic cases our partners are supporting is the persecution and arbitrary detention of five community leaders and environmental activists in Santa Marta, Cabañas Department, whose historic struggle led to a ban on metal mining in 2017. And on 18 May 2025, prominent human rights lawyer Ruth Eleonora López was arrested without formal charges, just days after several other human rights defenders were also detained.
Peru: New law undermines civil society and justice
In April 2025, the Peruvian Congress approved amendments to the law governing the Peruvian Agency for International Cooperation (APCI), restricting civil society in an alarming manner.
The amended law:
seriously threatens the ability of vulnerable groups, especially indigenous peoples and rural communities, to access legal defense and justice;
increases government control over civil society organisations that receive international funding;
enables the state to monitor, sanction, or even dissolve organisations under loosely defined criteria.
The UN and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights have condemned these amendments as violations of freedom of expression, association and access to justice.
Peruvian Bishops of CAFOD partners in the Amazon Vicariates and the Bishops’ Social Affairs Commission have warned that these measures risk cutting off essential support for communities facing human rights violations: “Those that will in fact be affected,” they warn, “are indigenous peoples, vulnerable populations, and their organisations.” They rely on civil society allies, including the Church, to obtain justice when human rights and collective rights have been violated. Landmark rulings – such as accountability for forced sterilisations of indigenous women under former President Fujimori - were only possible because civil society groups were free to document abuses and pursue legal action. Today, that door is closing.
This law is part of a broader pattern of attacks on civil society in Peru, including the use of criminal charges to silence protesters and Indigenous leaders, the weakening of key democratic institutions like the courts and electoral bodies, ongoing lack of justice for state violence during the 2022 protests, and the intimidation of human rights defenders. Civil society organisations – particularly those working in regions affected by mining industries – are increasingly denigrated as 'political' or 'anti-development'. Silencing defenders means silencing the voices of those most in need of justice.
CAFOD’s response to shrinking civic space in Latin America
The situation in Peru and El Salvador reflects a broader trend across Latin America. Civil society is under threat as climate, human rights and humanitarian crises worsen. In countries like Guatemala, Colombia, Brazil and Honduras, environmental defenders, Indigenous communities and human rights organisations face increasing repression: even death is not ruled out.
Attacks often target those opposing both legal and illegal extractive and mining activities, environmental degradation, and land seizures. Across the region, those defending human rights and our common home are portrayed as political adversaries. Their opponents want to undermine their own accountability and erode the protection of communities.
CAFOD will continue to stand with partner organisations to protect those standing up for their rights. We are supporting them with strategic and responsive funding to tackle the root causes of injustice, and help civil society and the Church to keep campaigning for the protection of those who need most help.
Between 2019 and 2022, CAFOD supported over 1,600 land and environmental defenders – more than half women – across seven countries in Latin America to strengthen their ability to protect themselves, fight key court battles on environmental harm and Indigenous self-government, and help them campaign for their rights. This work also helped communities raise their voices and bring their concerns to UK, EU and UN decision-makers, encouraging greater accountability of international corporations and reinforcing protections for defenders.
In Brazil, illegal gold mining threatens indigenous communities and defenders. In our recent report we pushed for stronger UK legislation to make companies accountable for the practices of their suppliers. We urged British banks and investors to withdraw funding linked to illegal mining, reduce demand for 'blood gold' and protect indigenous communities.
In Colombia, CAFOD is supporting human rights defenders and partners who are challenging the ongoing harm caused by the Cerrejón coal mine, including forced displacement and environmental destruction. CAFOD is supporting other cases of human rights abuses, including the way illegal gold mining fuels armed conflict and increases the damage caused by the climate crisis. In the UK and internationally, we amplify the calls of the communities on the ground for justice, protection and accountability.
In Honduras, CAFOD supports defenders protecting land and the river Guapinol from harmful extractive projects. We provide advocacy, protection measures and livelihood support to communities facing violence and repression, such as the tragic killing of environmental leader Juan López.
Standing together for justice and dignity
Civil society and the Catholic Church remain a vital force for justice, human rights, and environmental protection across Latin America – but their room to act is shrinking. As governments, corporations and illegal groups intensify attacks on land defenders, crack down on civil society, and weaken democratic institutions, the work of local communities and organisations, including CAFOD local partners, has never been more at risk. Without sustained support, brave individuals – including women, indigenous, small-scale farmers and Afro-descendant leaders – and their organisations face growing threats with fewer resources to resist injustice or protect our planet.
CAFOD is calling for strong UK and international laws to prevent human rights abuses and environmental harm, and to hold companies accountable – especially across their global value chains. We continue to support local partners in Latin America who work to ensure that environmental and human rights defenders have access to information, can participate in decision-making, and access justice. Protecting those who defend people and Our Common Home must be a global priority.
Aid cuts and political pressure are already limiting the reach of life-saving programmes. By continuing to stand in solidarity, CAFOD supporters help fund those on the front line. Now more than ever, it’s essential to raise awareness, support stronger protections, and hold governments and companies accountable.
We cannot afford to look away. Now is the time to stand with those defending life, land and dignity. Your support today helps ensure this vital work continues.
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