United Nations, May 16 (RHC)-- Justice for the murder of Honduran activist Berta Caceres will only be achieved when the rights of indigenous peoples to their land are respected, according to a senior United Nations official.

Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, the UN’s Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, welcomed the recent arrests of five suspects for the murder of the prominent activist.  But in an interview with Inter Press Service, she said the causes Caceres championed -- such as opposition to the building of a hydroelectric dam on indigenous land -- must be addressed as well.

The UN official said: “You cannot de-link the fight of indigenous people for their lands, territories and resources from the violence that’s committed against indigenous women (and men), especially if this is a violence that is perpetrated by state authorities or by corporate security.”