Indigenous women take charge in seeking accountability in the Brörán and Bribri territories of Costa Rica

In the aftermath of the killings of Indigenous leaders Sergio Rojas in 2019 and Jehry Rivera in 2020, Indigenous women – mothers, daughters, community leaders – have emerged as central actors in the defence of territory, justice and collective dignity in the Brörán and Bribri territories of southern Costa Rica. 

The men’s families and communities have been denied justice following the killings. Despite precautionary measures granted by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, impunity persists in both cases. 

The killings reveal the brutal reality of Indigenous Peoples in this region – one of violence, dispossession, and institutional discrimination that targets their collective rights and governance systems.

Indigenous women in these communities are now reshaping the meaning of accountability. In 2025, FPP worked alongside these women leaders to strengthen their capacity to engage with accountability mechanisms. This accompaniment took multiple forms: 

• legal solidarity in domestic court proceedings
• technical assistance with submissions to international human rights bodies
• support in documenting institutional failures
• facilitation of collective spaces where women could develop advocacy strategies grounded in Indigenous governance rather than imposed frameworks. 

A core focus has been strengthening their role as political actors – not merely as relatives of victims, but as leaders shaping collective responses. 

Throughout the year, the women have grown more confident in engaging with national authorities and international human rights mechanisms, articulating demands rooted in their own governance systems. They have strengthened collective protection strategies within their communities, transforming grief and sustained institutional failure into organised, strategic action. 

For many of these women, the struggle is profoundly personal. Digna Rivera, mother of Jehry Rivera, and Lucy Rojas, daughter of Sergio Rojas, have continued to speak publicly about the pursuit of justice, even as they navigate judicial processes marked by delays and procedural uncertainty that prolong trauma rather than provide redress.

“Justice is not only about a sentence. It is about recognising what happened to our people and ensuring it does not happen again. We carry this struggle not only for our families, but for the future of our territory.”

Digna Rivera

The courage of women like Digna and Lucy is forging new pathways toward justice that formal legal systems have failed to provide – pathways grounded in Indigenous territorial autonomy and collective protection.

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