Marvin Damián Castro Molina was a human rights defender from Choluteca in the South of Honduras who defended his territory against the imposition of economic projects such as mining, agro-industry projects and hydroelectric dams.
He was a member of the human rights and environmental organisation, Mass-Vida. He disappeared on Sunday, 12 July, 2020, and his body was found the next day.
Castro Molina was a member of the Red Juvenil de la Asociación de Desarrollo Pespirense-Honduras (Youth Network of the Development Association of Honduras) ADEPESHN, in the municipality of Pespire, Choluteca. He was also the coordinator and secretary of the Movimiento Ambientalista Social del Sur por la Vida (Environmental and Social Movement of the South for Life), MASS-Vida.
Castro was 29 years old and dedicated his human rights work to the organisation and formation of youth networks in the departments of Valle and Choluteca. He was recognised for this work in the region and in the spaces of social struggle in which he participated.
He had previously expressed concern for his safety because of his work as coordinator of the youth environmental defence movements in the south of the country and had lodged a complaint with the Sistema Nacional de Protección (SNP). National and international organisations have called for a thorough investigation into the killing.
The killing took place in the context of a wave of attacks on defenders of territorial and environmental rights in the south of the country. More than 100 such attacks were recorded in that area between January and June 2020.
