Ejidatarios from Mitzitón, adherents to the Other Campaign, have continued to denounce the deforestation, new aggressions, and “criminal acts of provocation” they attribute to followers of the Evangelical organization Army of God. They have responded with their own letter to the one sent by the Evangelical leader Esdras Alonso González to José Francisco Blake Mora, secretary of Governance, a month ago. They there affirm that “authorities and functionaries are aware of the death-threats, kidnappings, torture, gunfire, the killing of Aurelio Díaz Hernández, the attempts to rape our female comrades, scars resulting from aggressions with melee weapons, as well as the clandestine cutting-down of trees and the trafficking of people that have bloodied the hands and filled the pockets of the paramilitaries of the Army of God.”
The ejidatarios also denounced sub rosa deforestation, the reason given for the arrival to Mitztión of the Public Ministry on Tuesday 19 October. The ejidal assembly explains that “22 comrades accompanied [the delegation] so that they could record that which had occurred and measure the cut stumps. Four indigenous people who were watching the path of the MP’s vehicle were attacked by 10 paramilitiaries, who attacked them savagely with the wheel-brace of a truck. Moreover, they tied them up, placed a rope on their neck as though to hang them, and robbed them of their possessions. They punctured the four tires of the MP’s car […] and ransacked it. Twenty minutes later, a commission of ejidatarios accompanied the MP to the outer-reaches of the Rancho Nuevo military zone, which neighbors Mitzitón. There arrived paramilitaries who confused two soldiers dressed as civilians who had been with the MP. They beat them, tied them up, and also placed rope on their necks.”
Two army trucks carrying with them approximately 24 soldiers succeeded in rescuring the captive soldiers. The Mitzitón ejidatarios, adherents to the Other Campaign, denounced that “we see it badly that they did not rescue our comrades [as well]. We have heard President Felipe Calderón saying on the news that the Army works for our security and to put an end to organized crime. So then, why did they not arrest those criminals who traffic people, cut down trees, torture, kill, and commit so many aggressions? Why did they not rescue our comrades, whose only crime is to struggle to defend their land, territory, rights, life, and dignity?”
For more information (in Spanish):
- Communiqué of the organized people of Mitzitón (13 October 2010)
- Pronunciation: Mitzitón denounces events of recent days (Organized People of Mitzitón, Adherents to the Other Campaign. 21 October 2010)
- Adherents to the Other Campaign denounce paramilitary aggressions (La Jornada, 18 October)
- Conflict in Chiapas ejido of Mitzitón worsens (La Jornada, 19 October)
- Indigenous individuals send letter to Blake Mora denouncing paramilitary aggressions (La Jornada, 20 October)
- Evengelicals kidnap two soldiers by accident in Rancho Nuevo, Chiapas (La Jornada, 21 October)
For more information from SIPAZ:
Chiapas: Fray Bartolomé de Las Casas Center for Human Rights denounces criminalization of its work (13 October 2010)
Chiapas: New conflict in Mitzitón (8 September 2010)
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