Case History: Santos Neftali Ruíz Martínez
On 4 April 2015, Father Santos Neftalí Ruíz Martínez, together with Father Carlos Castillo, was standing outside the chapel in the municipality of Nejapa, waiting for people to arrive for the Eucharistic mass, when two members of the National Civil Police approached them. The police officers began to interrogate them and ordered Father Santos Neftalí Ruíz Martínez to lift up his shirt to reveal if he had tattoos or was carrying a weapon. Despite the human rights defender identifying himself as a priest, the policemen called for back-up.
Padre Santos Neftali Ruíz Martínez is a community organizer, anti-mining activist and human rights defender in Cabañas, El Salvador. He has been attacked and faces ongoing threats because of his human rights work.
Father Neftalí is the President of the Comité Ambiental de Cabañas – CAC (Environmental Committee of Cabañas), an organisation which works to educate the community about the health and environmental risks of cyanide contamination as a result of gold mining operations. Father Santos Neftalí Ruíz Martínez was also a participant at the Front Line Defenders Sixth Dublin Platform in September 2011.
On 4 April 2015, Father Santos Neftalí Ruíz Martínez, together with Father Carlos Castillo, was standing outside the chapel in the municipality of Nejapa, waiting for people to arrive for the Eucharistic mass, when two members of the National Civil Police approached them. The police officers began to interrogate them and ordered Father Santos Neftalí Ruíz Martínez to lift up his shirt to reveal if he had tattoos or was carrying a weapon. Despite the human rights defender identifying himself as a priest, the policemen called for back-up. A patrol car arrived promptly at the scene with a further two officers. The interrogation began again, with one particular officer verbally attacking the priest and accusing him of being a former member of a gang. The police officers phoned back to headquarters and allegedly spoke with their superiors. Father Santos Neftalí Ruíz Martínez explained that he is a human rights defender and informed them that he would report the harassment and intimidation to international organisations. In the end the officers registered his name and said that they would not file their report to their superiors if he agreed not to file his own complaint.
The El Dorado mine which the activists oppose is currently non-operational due to a suspension of activities resulting from an ongoing legal case. The operation initially closed after local protests, and the outgoing Salvadoran government refused Pacific Rim's mining permits in late 2008; President Funes furthermore stated his opposition to the project during his 2009 presidential campaign. In response, Pacific Rim opened an arbitration case against the Salvadoran government seeking millions of dollars in compensation. In November 2013 Canadian-Australian firm OceanaGold acquired Pacific Rim Mining.
