National: Second March for National Dignity

On 10 May, Mother’s Day in Mexico, there was held a “Second March for National Dignity” in which participated Mexican and Central American mothers who are seeking out their disappeared daughters and sons in Mexico.  The caravan was accompanied by civil-society organizations that demand truth and justice for the at least 26,000 cases of disappearances that have occurred in recent years, the majority of which continue without having been investigated.

“Today, May 10, is a very special day for many women who are mothers in Mexico.  However, for these mothers it is a sad memory of the absence of their children,” emphasized Daniel Zapico, representative of Amnesty International (AI) in Mexico.  “It is time that these authorities recognize the dignity of the struggle of these families and act to observe their obligations to clarify their disappearances and hold those responsible to justice,” noted the communique published by AI on the occasion.

For its part, the Network All Rights for All expressed that “it is very worrying that a year after the first March for National Dignity, the demands of mothers and relatives have not been resolved, and the number of disappeared continues to rise.  These realities show us the incompetence and lack of will on the part of local, state, and federal authorities to labor to resolve the disappearances and above all to guarantee, protect, and respect the human rights of all.  The Mexican State should take its responsibility by finding the disappeared, utilizing all the means available to it so that victims have access to truth, reparations, and the security of not continuing to be object of violations that damage their dignity.”

For more information (in Spanish):

Madres con hijos desaparecidos marchan, lanzan globos, cuentan su historia, lloran… (Proceso, 10 de mayo de 2013)

Madres de desaparecidos exigen búsqueda efectiva de sus familiares (La Jornada, 10 de mayo de 2013)

La Red TDT se solidariza con la Segunda Marcha de la Dignidad Nacional (Comunicado Red TdT, 10 de mayo de 2013)

Demandan que se tipifique como delito la desaparición de personas en Chihuahua (Proceso, 9 de mayo de 2013)

Participará Amnistía Internacional en Marcha de la Dignidad Nacional (La Jornada, 9 de mayo de 2013)

For more information from SIPAZ (in English):

National: Mothers of the disappeared on hunger strike before Segob (16 November 2012)

Mexico: Caravan of mothers of Central American migrants seeking out their children (2 November 2012)

National: “March for National Dignity, mother seeking out their children and justice” (18 May 2012)

Mexico: Report of the UN Work Group on Forced and Involuntary Disappearances (24 March 2012)

Chiapas: Civil Observation Mission ends in Tenosique; migrants and rights-defenders in grave danger; caravan of Central American mothers searching for disappeared relatives arrives in Tenosique (14 November 2011)

Mexico: the International Week of the Disappeared and Detained ends (9 June 2011)

Mexico: Preliminary conclusions from the UN relator regarding extrajudicial, summary, and arbitrary executions in the country

From 22 April to 2 May, the Special Relator of the Untied Nations on extrajudicial, summary, and arbitrary executions, Christof Heyns, visited Mexico, where he met with governmental officials, judges, members of civil society, and victims in Mexico City and the states of Chihuahua, Guerrero, and Nuevo León.

Upon finishing his visit, Heyns urged the Mexican government to strengthen the structure of the country in terms of protection of human rights in general and the right to life in particular, so as to reduce the necessity of the use of force.  Mr. Heyns also recommended the reduction of the involvement of military forces in police tasks.

“From my point of view, it is particularly important to diminish the participation of soldiers in police work, to assure that civil courts judge members of the armed forces who have been accused of committing human-rights violations, including murders of civilians; and to establish clear and broadly recognized standards on the use of force on the part of public-security forces,” he said.  The Special Relator also called special attention to the problem of impunity: “All of these lives that have been lost should be investigated with the same rigor, and each perpetrator should be apprehended and judged.  To follow this object it would serve not only to diminish impunity but also to re-establish the value that society places on life,” he emphasized.  Heyns stressed the importance of making justice by solving past homicides, whether committed during the Dirty War, or the more than 100,000 registered during the government of Felipe Calderón.  Whichever strategy is chosen for the future, he noted, must first look to the past.

For more information (in Spanish):

El desastre mexicano pone a dudar al relator Heyns (Proceso, 7 de mayo de 2013)

Comunicado de prensa: Relator Especial de la ONU urge al Estado mexicano a fortalecer la protección de los DH y reducir el uso de las fuerzas militares en labores policíacas(OACNUDH, 3 de mayo de 2013)

La estrategia militar contra crimen no funciona: ONU(El Universal, 3 de mayo de 2013)

Impunidad sistémica y endémica, principal desafío del gobierno federal: Christof Heyns (La Jornada, 3 de mayo de 2013)

Observaciones preliminares sobre la visita oficial a México del Relator Especial sobre ejecuciones extrajudiciales, sumarias o arbitrarias, Christof Heyns, 22 de abril al 2 de mayo del 2013b (2 de mayo de 2013)

Ojalá gendarmería no se trate del Ejército con “otro uniforme”: Relator de la ONU (Proceso. 2 de mayo de 2013)

Activistas y víctimas de Guerrero se reúnen con el relator de la ONU (La Jornada, 30 de abril de 2013)

Presenta ombudsman a relator de la ONU panorama de derechos (La Jornada, 25 de abril de 2013)

Especial interés de relator de la ONU en temas de fuero y justicia militar del país(La Jornada, 24 de abril de 2013)

Detallan a relator de la ONU un negro panorama en derechos humanos en México (Proceso, 24 de abril de 2013)

Chiapas: Call for Justice and the #Release of Patishtán, from 4 May to 19 June

From 4 May to 19 June, relatives of the prisoner Alberto Patishtán Gómez, the Movement of the People of El Bosque in Favor of the Release of Alberto Patishtán, and other organizations have organized a campaign called “For Justice and the #Release of Patishtan.”  In the blog which contains the information regarding Patishtán Gómez, it is asserted that “the lawyers of professor ALBERTO PATISHTAN have been informed at the Supreme Court for Justice in the Nation that the resolution is still to be awaited [...].  In light of this, we believe that during this month of May it is possible to remit the case before the FIRST COLLEGIATE TRIBUNAL which will release its decision immediately.  As a consequence, the resolution as to whether his innocence will be recognized or not could be had in the month of June 2013.”

On 19 June will have passed 13 years since the beginning of the incarceration of professor Patishtán, and it is for this reason that the campaign will be launched.  Beyond this, there will be carried out presentations of the documentary “Alberto Patishtan: Live or Die for Truth and Justice.”  In this sense, there will also be a campaign to sign letters directed to the justices of the First Collegiate Tribunal of the Tuxtla Gutierrez Circuit.  Some of the other actions to be included will be a march every Friday from 10-12pm and from 4-7pm, with the Twitter hashtag #ReleasePatishstán.

For more information (in Spanish):

CONVOCATORIA POR LA JUSTICIA Y LA #LIBERTADPATISHTAN del 4 de mayo al 19 de junio 2013 (Blog Alberto Patishtán, mayo 2013)

Documental: Alberto Patishtán; Vivir o Morir Por la Verdad y la Justicia (Koman Ilel, abril 2013)

For more information from SIPAZ (in English):

Chiapas: Pilgrimage of the Believing People for the release of professor Alberto Patishtán Gómez (23 April 2013)

Chiapas: Petition from the CDHFBC to release Alberto Patishtán (15 April 2013)

Chiapas: Forthcoming actions for the release of Alberto Patishtán (8 April 2013)

Chiapas: “Justice is its opposite,” declares Alberto Patishtán (20 March 2013)

Chiapas: Pilgrimage by the Believing People for the release of professor Alberto Patishtán Gómez

On 19 April, on the birthday of professor Alberto Patishtán Gómez, some 8,000 people participated in a pilgrimage for the release of this Tsotsil teacher in the capital city of Chiapas, Tuxtla Gutiérrez.  This was a pilgrimage organized by the Believing People, a Tsotsil team from the San Cristobal de Las Casas diocese, and the Movement of El Bosque for the Release of Alberto Patishtán.  The march was accompanied by teachers from Section 7 of the National Union of Educational Workers (SNTE); the route was to end at the First Collegiate Tribunal of the Twentieth Circuit, where there may be held discussions regarding the liberty of Patishtán in the next few days.  Beyond this, there was held a rally at the Council on Federal Judiciary in Mexico City, besides the protests held outside Mexican consulates and embassies throughout the world.

Different communication media made public the state government’s intention to cancel this pilgrimage, given that it coincided with the visit of Enrique Peña Nieto and the former president of Brasil, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, to relaunch the National Crusade against Hunger in Navenchauc, Zinacantán, which is not far from Tuxtla Gutiérrez.  These pressures were communicated by the subsecretary of governance, Moisés Zenteno, from the mayor of El Bosque, Orlando Martínez, and two residents of the community who “only want money,” as professor Martín Ramírez said, being a member of the Movement of El Bosque for the Release of Alberto Patishtán;  he added that he had replied by saying that he could not “arrest the mobilization, given that it is a national and international affair,” to which was replied that “the mayor threatened that Patishtán could be held longer in prison if the march in fact took place.”  Subsequently, Martín Ramírez received a call from Moisés Nimrod, warning him that the pilgrimage had to be canceled “because the governor will release Patishtán.”  Requesting that the official confirm this deal, Nimrod reneged and recognized that it was not in the hands of the government, but that “he will see what he can do.”

In other news, the governor of Chiapas, Manuel Velasco Coello, visited Alberto Patishtán Gómez in prison no. 5 in San Cristóbal de Las Casas a day before the pilgrimage, and he committed himself to promoting the release of Patishtán and a new review of the cases of the other prisoners from the organizations the Voz del Amate and those in solidarity with the Voz del Amate. Accompanying the governor were the state attorney general, Raziel López Salazar, and teh state secretary for public security, Jorge Luis Llaven Abarca. Before Alberto Patishtán, Velasco Coello expressed his personal interest in the case, declaring that he believes in his innocence, and committing himself to discuss the case with president Enrique Peña during his visit the following day.

Víctor Hugo López, director of the Fray Bartolomé de las Casas Center for Human Rights (CDHFBC), indicated that the government “demands a cancellation of the pilgrimage programmed for this Friday, because it wants to demonstrate a scene cleansed of social protest; this would be the first mass-mobilization in the state capital during this new administration.”  He also added that the CDHFBC was concerned for the security both of Patishtán and Martín Ramírez, “because the tone of the demand changed from request to threat and, as we have seen in other cases, repression can be used after negotiations fail to achieve what is desired.”

Lastly, the Believing People published a communique during the pilgrimage, expressing that “Today the federal and state governments [...] have proposed strategies of a crusade against hunger.  That is not true in their words; we believe and are convinced that it is in fact a CRUSADE AGAINST THE HUNGRY; we indigenous and campesino peoples ARE HUNGRY, but we have hunger for the truth and justice in the Acteal case, and HUNGER FOR THE IMMEDIATE AND UNCONDITIONAL RELEASE OF OUR BROTHER ALBERTO PATISHTAN.”  It continues: “Mssrs. Justices of the First Collegiate Tribunal of the Twentieth Circuit, do not continue staining your dignity and prestige maintaining imprisoned our brother.  Within the historical memory of the Mexican people the decision that you take regarding this innocent person will remain forever remembered.”

For more information (in Spanish):

Tzotziles y maestros marchan por la libertad de Patishtán (La Jornada, 20 de abril de 2013)

Peregrinan tzotziles por libertad de Patishtán (El Universal, 19 de abril de 2013)

Palabra de Pueblo creyente en la peregrinación por la Libertad de Patishtán (Chiapas Denuncia Pública, 19 de abril de 2013)

Se compromete Manuel Velasco a gestionar la libertad de Patishtán (La Jornada, 18 de abril de 2013)

Presiones para detener las movilizaciones a favor de Patishtán por visita de Peña Nieto (Desinformémonos, abril 2013)

El Gobernador de Chiapas Manuel Velasco Coello reconoció inocencia de Patishtán (Chiapas Denuncia Pública, 19 de abril de 2013)

Liberación Inmediata e incondicional a nuestro hermano Alberto Patishtán Gómez (Blog Las Abejas de Actea, 19 de abril de 2013)

Audio-video:

Retransmisión de la peregrinación y entrevistas (Koman Ilel, 19 de abril de 2013)

For more information from SIPAZ (in English):

Chiapas: Petition from the CDHFBC to release Alberto Patishtán (15 April 2013)

Chiapas: Forthcoming actions for the release of Alberto Patishtán (8 April 2013)

Chiapas: “Justice is its opposite,” declares Alberto Patishtán (20 March 2013)

México/Chiapas: SCJN rejects review of case of Alberto Patishtán(20 March 2013)

Chiapas: Petition from the CDHFBC to release Alberto Patishtán Gómez

Children of Patishtán @ Swefor

On 10 April, some 400 persons marched in the El Bosque municipality to demand the release of professor Alberto Patishtán Gómez, who was “unjustly” been incarcerated in prison no. 5 of San Cristóbal de Las Casas for nearly 13 years, accused of having participated in an ambush that resulted in the death of 7 police officers.  “All indigenous people feel incarcerated, rejected, and discriminated against” with his imprisonment, as protestors noted in a letter directed to the magistrates of the First Collegiate Tribunal of the Twentieth Circuit, which shortly will resolve whether or not to release the teacher.  This letter arrived on 11 April, organized by relatives of Patishtan and the Movement of the People of El Bosque in favor of the release of Alberto Patishtán Gómez; it counted approximately 5000 signatures.  For its part, the Fray Bartolome de Las Casas Center for Human Rights (CDHFBC) published petitions for Patishtan on Avaaz.org and Change.org, to be presented before the magistrates.

Several media have noted the juxtaposition of the ordered liberation of 15 persons accused of having participated in the Acteal massacre, as demanded by the First Hall of the Supreme Court for Justice in the Nation (SCJN), which rejected a review of Patishtán’s request for innocence on 6 March.  The notes made by Aristegui Noticias indicate that “the news reflect the different modes of justice in Mexico, where those accused of guilt are released and those accused of innocence are incarcerated.”

Beyond this, the actions for professor Patishtán continue.  Within prison no. 5, Patishtán Gómez announced the close of a second week of hunger-strike that will continue with two silent marches within the prison, on 13 and 14 April.  In solidarity, Enrique Gómez Hernández will be participating in the hunger strike from 11 to 19 April in the Amate prison no. 4 in Cintalapa.  On 19 April is planned a pilgrimage in Tuxtla Gutierrez, the day that Alberto Patishtán will have his forty-second birthday.

For more information (in Spanish):

Carta de Avaaz.org para firmar en español

Carta de Change.org para firmar en español

Entregan a tribunal carta con 5 mil firmas para que libere a Patishtán (La Jornada, 12 de abril de 2013)

Con Patishtán en prisión, todos los indígenas nos sentimos encarcelados  (La Jornada, 11 de abril de 2013)

Libres por orden de la Corte, otros 15 indígenas implicados en el caso Acteal (La Jornada, 11 de abril de 2013)

Patishtan y Acteal: las diferentes varas de la justicia (Aristegui Noticias, 11 de abril de 2013)

Entregan 4 mil 736 firmas a favor de la Libertad de Alberto Patishtán (Chiapas Denuncia Pública, 11 de abril de 2013)

Anuncia 9 días de ayuno Enrique Gomez Hernández Solidario de la Voz del Amate (Chiapas Denuncia Pública, 11 de abril de 2013)

Alberto Patishtán anuncia el termino del ayuno y comparte acciónes para el 13 y 14 de abril (Chiapas Denuncia Pública, 11 de abril de 2013)

In English:

Avaaz petition in English

Change.org petition in English

For more information from SIPAZ (in English):

Chiapas: Forthcoming actions for the release of Alberto Patishtán (8 April 2013)

Chiapas: “Justice is its opposite,” declares Alberto Patishtán (20 March 2013)

México/Chiapas: SCJN rejects review of case of Alberto Patishtán(20 March 2013)

Mexico/Chiapas: Alberto Patishtán should be immediately released, notes Olga Sánchez Cordero (5 March 2013)

Mexico/Chiapas: The SCJN admits the Patishtán case (12 October 2012)

Chiapas: Forthcoming actions for the release of Alberto Patishtán

During the month of April there will be held several actions in favor of Alberto Patishtán Gómez, which will include two marches, one on 10 April in the municipal center of El Bosque, and the other on 19 April in Tuxtla Gutiérrez, as undertaken by the Believing People together with the Movement of the People of El Bosque.  The priest Marcelo Pérez, parishioner of Simojovel, has expressed that “we are enraged by the rejection of the motion by the Supreme Court for Justice in the Nation (SCJN), while it has taken on the cases of Florence Cassez and that of the material authors of the massacre of 45 people in Acteal, liberating him, even though they really aren’t innocent,” thus referring to the postponement of decision in the case of Patishtán on the part of the SCJN on 6 March.  Now, all attention is on the Primary Collegiate Tribunal of the Twentieth Circuit, located in the Palace of Federal Justice in Tuxtla Gutiérrez, which will receive the documents on the case of Patishtán so as to decide on his motion for recognition of innocence.

Amnesty International (AI) has called on the justices of this Tribunal to “respond in an exemplary way” that establishes jurisprudence in cases such as that of Alberto Patishtán Gómez, “so that in the future there be averted the injustice to which he has been subjected.”  In AI’s opinion, the SCJN should have resolved the case in Patishtan’s favor, though it did not.  AI also noted that these same justices have the obligation of impartially evaluating the evidence presented by the defense, in accordance with international obligations that are integrated into the Mexican Constitution.In an article in La Jornada, Cecilia Santiago Vera details the type of police habits which invalidate the terms of ratified human-rights accords: “Forced entry, illegal search of homes, while no crime is in progress and without any judicial order; the detention and movement of police agents without arrest orders; the violence, death-threats, interrogations and abuses without the presence of a rights-defender and so the receipt of self-incrimination and signed declarations that are not read; though these be painful and embarrassing to recognize, such are the practices that continue in this country called Mexico.  Torture as well.”

For more information (in Spanish):

Anuncian peregrinación en Tuxtla para exigir la libertad del profesor Patishtán (La Jornada, 3 de abril de 2013)

Cambio, continuidad e impartición de justicia (La Jornada, 3 de abril de 2013)

Próximas Acciones por la #LibertadPatishtan (Blog Alberto Patishtan)

Caso Patishtán: AI pide a tribunal colegiado justicia sin discriminación (La Jornada, 27 de marzo de 2013)

For more information from SIPAZ (in English):

Chiapas: “Justice is its opposite,” declares Alberto Patishtán (20 March 2013)

México/Chiapas: SCJN rejects review of case of Alberto Patishtán(20 March 2013)

Mexico/Chiapas: Alberto Patishtán should be immediately released, notes Olga Sánchez Cordero (5 March 2013)

Mexico/Chiapas: The SCJN admits the Patishtán case (12 October 2012)

 

Chiapas: New Campaign Forward for the Liberty of Alberto Patishtán

On 20 March, a press conference at the Fray Bartolome de Las Casas Center for Human Rights (CDHFBC) announced the launch of a new campaign in favor of Alberto Patishtán Gómez, called Campaign Forward for the Liberty of Alberto Patishtán, which will consist of a mass-sending of letters to the president of the Council on Federal Judiciary, Juan Meza Silva, as well as the First Collegiate Tribunal, toward the end of promoting the review of the case of professor Patishtán, as has been announced by his legal counsel, Leonel Rivero Rodríguez, from Strategic Defense for Human Rights A.C.  Within this context, there will also be had different mobilizations in embassies and consulates as well as days of fasting by members of the Voz del Amate and those in solidarity with the Voz del Amate, noted Patishtan himself from prison no. 5 in San Cristóbal de Las Casas.  The proposal is to have the Collegiate Tribunal resolve the case “using consciousness.”

During the press-conference were also heard the voices of representatives of the El Bosque community and relatives of Alberto, who have not given up their struggle for his release over the course of the nearly 13 years that he has been imprisoned, in addition to members of Collective Ik’, those accompanying political prisoners and prisoners of conscience, who stressed that “the call for his release has been made by the very governor [of Chiapas] Manuel Velasco Coello, the bishop of San Cristobal Felipe Arizmendi, and the EZLN by means of Subcomandante Marcos, in addition to the entire social movement in the El Bosque municipality.”  They added that never before had there been such a diverse range of personalities uniting against injustice.

The mobilizations will last until 19 April, which is Patishtán Gómez’s birthday.  During a telephone call, Alberto noted that “Despite this new wave of injustice, I will never rest as regards justice and liberty.”  In his call he included collectives, churches, students, workers, communities, and also demanded the release of his comrades in solidarity with the Voz del Amate.

There exists the possibility that his case be resolved in justice, in the estimation of his lawyer.  “The case should go to the First Collegiate Tribunal [in Tuxtla Gutierrez] and this will determine whether we have reason on our side.  That which passed as evidence 10 years ago, when he was sentenced, now no longer can be considered so to be since 2009, for the process was reviewed, with that evidence found to be illegal.”

For more information (in Spanish):

Conferencia de prensa 20 de marzo (Blog Alberto Patishtán, 20 de marzo de 2013)

Lanzan campaña por la libertad de Alberto Patishtán (Aristegui Noticias, 20 de marzo de 2013)

Anuncian nueva campaña internacional para exigir la liberación de Patishtán (La Jornada, 21 de marzo de 2013)

Audios:

Por la Libertad de Alberto Patishtán acciones mundiales (Chiapas Denuncia Pública, 21 de marzo de 2013)

For more information from SIPAZ (in English):

Chiapas: “Justice is its opposite,” declares Alberto Patishtán (20 March 2013)

México/Chiapas: SCJN rejects review of case of Alberto Patishtán(20 March 2013)

Mexico/Chiapas: Alberto Patishtán should be immediately released, notes Olga Sánchez Cordero (5 March 2013)

Mexico/Chiapas: The SCJN admits the Patishtán case (12 October 2012)

Mexico/Chiapas: SCJN rejects review of case of Alberto Patishtán

Image @ Koman Ilel

On 6 March the Supreme Court for Justice in the Nation (SCJN) decided not to review its competence regarding the case of professor Alberto Patishtán Gómez, from the El Bosque municipality of Chiapas.  The decision was taken on the basis of the project of the justice Olga Sánchez Cordero, who had suggested new hope to favor the cause of Patishtán, given that, if he had been judged according to the criteria approved by the Primary Hall in recent years, surely he would have been released due to the grave violations of due process which occurred during his trial.

Manuel Velasco Coello, governor of Chiapas, affirmed that the Tzotzil indigenous man Alberto Patishtán Gómez, who had been imprisoned since 2000, “should be released.”  In a communiqué, he assured that Patishtán Goméz, who has been sentenced for 60 years, “should be granted a recognition of his innocence.”  ”The SCJN’s decision should have favored the release” of Patishtán, reiterated the governor.

Now, the case returns to a court in Tuxtla Gutiérrez.  “There still remains racism within Mexican justice,” claimed Patishtán’s defense team.  It is hoped that the new process will last three weeks in arriving to the tribunal in Tuxtla.  All indications show that this court could decide on the resource of innocence.

For more information (in Spanish):

Patishtán debe ser puesto en libertad: gobernador de Chiapas (La Jornada, 7 de marzo de 2013)

SCJN: Doce años de injusticia son insuficientes para Alberto Patishtán(Centro de Medios Libres, 7 de marzo de 2013)

“Estamos gobernados por la injusticia”: Patishtán tras negativa de la Corte (La Jornada, 6 de marzo de 2013)

Rechaza la SCJN resolver el caso del profesor indígena Alberto Patishtán (La Jornada, 6 de marzo de 2013)

Rechaza el caso de alberto la SCJN (Blog de Alberto Patishtán, 6 de marzo de 2013)

For more information from SIPAZ (in English):

Mexico/Chiapas: Alberto Patishtán should be immediately released, notes Olga Sánchez Cordero (5 March 2013)

Mexico/Chiapas: The SCJN admits the Patishtán case (12 October 2012)

Mexico/Chiapas: Postponement of the SCJN’s decision on the Patishtán case (12 October 2012)

Chiapas: Alberto Patishtán loses his sight, and request on his part (28 September 2012)

Mexico/Chiapas: Request for recognition of innocence of Alberto Patishtán before the SCJN (19 September 2012)

Chiapas: March in Cerss nº5 of San Cristóbal de Las Casas for prisoner Rosario Díaz

On 22 February there was held a protest march within prison no. 5 in San Cristóbal de Las Casas, Chiapas, to denounce the injustices carried out gainst Rosario Díaz Méndez, who was newly sentenced to 25 years at the end of January.  Those in solidarity with the Voz del Amate together with proper members of this organization (Rosario and Alberto Patishtán Gómez) made public an audio declaration in which they called on the state governor, Manuel Velasco Coello, to “put an end to these unjust incarcerations, immediately and without conditions.”

It should be noted that Rosario Díaz has always maintained his innocence, given that at the very time of the crime for which he has been charged, he was working in construction in Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo, with two of his sons, who corroborate this claim.

For more information (in Spanish):

Audio Denuncia de Solidarios y Voz del Amate (Chiapas Denuncia Pública, 22 de febrero de 2013)

Audio Denuncia de Solidarios y Voz del Amate: realizaron una marcha de protesta dentro del penal el viernes 22 de febrero (Enlace Zapatista, 23 de febrero de 2013)

For more information from SIPAZ (in English):

Chiapas: End of week of fasting for prisoners in Cerss nº5 (12 February 2013)

Chiapas: The Voz del Amate and those in solidarity fasting and praying (5 February 2013)

Mexico/Chiapas: Alberto Patishtán should be immediately released, notes Olga Sánchez Cordero

Image @ Pozol.org

The First Hall of the Supreme Court for Justice in the Nation (SCJN) has planned on 6 March to address the motion requesting the recognition of innocence of the Tsotsil professor Alberto Patishtán Gómez, given that the justice Olga Sánchez Cordero will present the project that would allow for the decision of whether the SCJN has the ability to begin profoundly studying the requested motion.  The project elaborated by Olga Sánchez indicates clearly that Alberto Patishtán should be immediately released.

The officials have reported to the media regarding the move by the justice, adding that the project notes that if the accused (of 60 years of age) had been judged in light of the recent constitutional reforms on human rights and the new decisions taken by the First Hall on due process and presumption of innocence, Patishtán would already be freed.It was explained that juridically the affair is very complicated, because the sentence that has Patishtán incarcerated has an indefinite timewindow.  It is for this reason, they added, that a favorable decision for the teacher would be very difficult to approve, given that he must be supported by at least two other justices to receive his freedom.  Furthermore, during the course of its history, the SCJN has on occasion recognized innocence of prisoners; it has done so only rarely because new and irrefutable evidence is required to demonstrate that the accused is not responsible for the crime for which s/he has been charged.  This is the move that has been made by the lawyers of Patishtán Gómez.For more information (in Spanish):

Boletín: En manos de la SCJN asumir el caso de Alberto Patishtán Gómez y crear un referente en la administración de justicia a favor de los derechos humanos en nuestro país (Centro de Derechos Humanos Fray Bartolomé de Las Casas, 28 de febrero de 2012)

Patishtán debe ser liberado de inmediato, según proyecto de la ministra Olga Sánchez (La Jornada, 28 de febrero de 2013)

Palabra de Alberto Patishtán Gómez sobre próxima decisión de la SCJN sobre su caso (Chiapas Denuncia Pública, 4 de marzo de 2013)

Audio-Video:

Entrevista a Abogados de Alberto Patishtan (Koman Ilel, 12 de febrero de 2013)

Entrega del Amicus Curiae ante Suprema Corte de la Nación (Blog Alberto Patishtán, 4 de marzo de 2013)

Programa Especial sobre Alberto Patishtán (Blog Alberto Patishtán, febrero de 2013)

For more information from SIPAZ (in English):

Mexico/Chiapas: The SCJN admits the Patishtán case (12 October 2012)

Mexico/Chiapas: Postponement of the SCJN’s decision on the Patishtán case (12 October 2012)

Chiapas: Alberto Patishtán loses his sight, and request on his part (28 September 2012)

Mexico/Chiapas: Request for recognition of innocence of Alberto Patishtán before the SCJN (19 September 2012)