Costa Rica News – The indigenous territory Salitre makes up more than 30,000 acres of land in Costa Rica’s Puntarenas province. The country’s indigenous law from 1977 protects their land rights but local non-indigenous say that previous land purchases included some of the land where the indigenous currently live.
The conflict has been growing the past few days between local farm owners and indigenous people who are fighting over land. This fight for territory has existed for years but arose once more after farm owners blocked the entrance to the Cebror indigenous community as a response to supposed invasions on non-indigenous land.
Both parties have now reached out to the local government and asking them to decide whom the land belongs to. The current Viceminister to the President, Ana Gabriel Zuniga has put a stop to the fighting and is currently working toward a solution. She visited the land herself and promised to have an answer by July 13th.
The indigenous and farm owners admit that they are sometimes able to work together but that when it comes to the land each claims possession.
Although the farm owners claim no threats against the indigenous people, these claim that they were forced into the mountains and into hiding because they fear for their safety.
