Esmeralda Beatriz Rodriguez de Peña
Esmeralda Beatriz Rodriguez de Peña is a woman human rights defender and community leader from the department of Usulután that for years has worked for the rights of her community through the Association for Community Development (ADESCO). In particular, she has worked on the right to truth and historical memory, as she is a survivor of the La Quesera massacre that took place in 1981 at the hands of the Armed Forces.
The human rights defender community is regularly subjected to campaigns of defamation - they are labeled as 'traitors of the nation', 'terrorists' and 'subversive'. This tactic employed by the authorities is designed to discredit and undermine the work of human rights defenders by isolating and marginalising them, making them a vulnerable target for abuse. Community leaders and environmental activists who are opposed to large-scale mining projects face death threats and violence.
