After spending over two months in prison under charges of terrorism, Rubén Herrera, community leader and outspoken activist against the Hydro Santa Cruz dam in Barillas, Huehuetenango, was released on Thursday May 30^th due to a lack of evidence to the charges against him.

“This is a historic moment for the Mapuche nation and for all nations of the continent because it is setting a precedent for international opinion in a case in which a First Nation seeks justice and reparation for the violence inflicted by the State.”—Victor Ancalaf, Lof Choin Lafquenche, Mapuche People, Chile

Febna Caven

On Monday, May 20, 2013, Anselmo Xunic (Kaqchikel Maya), Guatemala Community Radio Program Manager for Cultural Survival and longtime Indigenous community radio activist, meet with James Anaya, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples during the 12th Session of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues in New York. The meeting with Rapporteur Anaya was a long-awaited opportunity for Xunic and the community radio movement to put a face on their struggle at the international level.