Monika Silva, Ecuador anti‑corruption activist, found dead; probes launch amid calls for justice

Polish‑born anti‑corruption and environmental activist Monika Silva Koniuszek, president of the La Integridad Foundation, was discovered dead on 8 June in her home in the El Tigrillo neighbourhood of Montañita, Santa Elena province, Ecuador. Police reported a visible wound on her neck and have taken her mobile phone and other evidence into custody while the Attorney General’s office opened an investigation.

Silva had long denounced alleged land‑trafficking, administrative corruption and environmental abuses in the province and had previously reported death threats. Hundreds of NGOs, human‑rights groups and community organisations issued a joint statement demanding a thorough and transparent inquiry, accusing the state of failing to protect her despite her warnings. Her lawyer, Ítalo Pincay, expressed doubts about a suicide ruling, noting that Silva would not abandon her two young daughters, who are now under the care of a close friend with oversight from the national child‑protection agency (DINAPEN).