@Radio Pozol
On May 23rd, the 74 students from the Mactumactza Normal Rural School arrested on May 18th left El Amate prison, in the municipality of Cintalapa. Their release was conditional and they will continue their trial in freedom, having to register every 15 days.
Vidulfo Rosales Sierra, who is part of the team of lawyers of Section 7 of the National Union of Education Workers (SNTE), expressed that “there is great concern because in any way students are being subjected to prosecution and a purely academic demand that has to do with the launch of a course and the realization of an exam in person is being judged and punished.” This is something that could have been solved “through political dialogue and agreement.”
19 men remain detained, including two displaced indigenous people from Colonia Puebla, municipality of Chenalho.
All are accused of rioting, gang activity, robbery with violence, attacks against the peace and the bodily and patrimonial integrity of the community and the state, and damages. They were arrested on May 18th when they occupied the toll booth on the San Cristobal-Tuxtla Gutierrez highway to demand that the normal admission exam be carried out in person and not online.
In this case, both the National Human Rights Commission (CNDH) and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCHR) have condemned the disproportionate use of police force in the repression of students. They have asked the Chiapas authorities to guarantee due process and respect for the human rights of detainees, as well as to investigate allegations of abuse by state public officials.
For more information in Spanish:
Liberan en Chiapas a las 74 normalistas de Mactumactzá (La Jornada, 24 de mayo de 2021)
Las 74 mujeres normalistas detenidas de Mactumactzá seguirán proceso en libertad (Proceso, 24 de mayo de 2021)
Liberan a 74 alumnas de Mactumactzá (El Universal, 24 de mayo de 2021)
Condena CNDH represión contra normalistas de Mactumactzá (La Jornada, 23 de mayo de 2021)
ONU exige investigar denuncias de tortura por parte de funcionarios públicos contra normalistas de Mactumactzá (Animal Político, 23 de mayo de 2021)
For more information from SIPAZ:
sipazen.wordpress.com 