The death of a Canadian who was killed in Peru is linked to the reported murder of an Indigenous human rights defender, Canadian authorities said Sunday.
Global Affairs Canada confirmed in an email that the killing of the unnamed Canadian is related to the alleged assassination of Indigenous elder Olivia Arevalo Lomas.
Arevalo Lomas was a human rights activist of the Shipibo-Konibo people in the Ucayali region.
The federal government said it is providing consular assistance to the family of the Canadian.
The government extended its condolences following Arevalo Lomas’s death.
Peru’s ombudsman condemned the death of the Indigenous elder in series of Twitter messages, describing Arevalo Lomas as a promoter of her people’s cultural
rights.
The ombudsman said increased illegal activity was putting Indigenous people’s lives at risk.
