The Blood of the Land: What 124 Deaths Reveal About Sacred Duty

At least 124 land and environmental defenders were killed worldwide last year, with Latin America accounting for 85 percent of those deaths, according to Global Witness. Colombia remained the deadliest nation for the fourth consecutive year with 39 killings, followed by Brazil with 26, and Honduras and the Philippines with 12 each.

For Indigenous and small-scale farming communities, this violence is not merely political — it strikes at the heart of spiritual obligation. Defending rivers, forests, and ancestral territory is, for many, a sacred charge. Among the dead was Vicente Fernandes Vilhalva, a 36-year-old member of Brazil’s Guarani Kaiowa people, shot during an armed attack on his community in Mato Grosso do Sul in November. His people have long struggled to reclaim ancestral land.

The worldwide toll fell for a second consecutive year, yet Global Witness cautions this does not mean defenders are safer. Killings remain underreported, while land disputes, organized crime, and resource competition converge on those protecting creation itself. Their witness asks every spiritual seeker: what is land worth, and who will speak for it?