9-year-old girl is wounded during gunfire attacks in Aldama, Chiapas: Paramilitary War on Zapatista and Indigenous Communities Escalates
«The risk to the life, security and personal integrity of the Tsotsil inhabitants of the communities of Aldama intensifies»
9-year-old girl is wounded during gunfire attacks in the communities of the municipality of Aldama
The risk to the life, security and personal integrity of the Tsotsil inhabitants of the communities of Aldama intensifies.
«Mexican State complicit in extermination» declares the Fray Bartolomé de Las Casas Center, FRAYBA.
Yesterday, March 25, 2022, around 3:25 p.m., a 9 year old girl was wounded by a gunshot to the head.
The minor was injured by a bullet while she was inside her home, and was later transferred to the hospital in San Cristóbal. She is originally from the community of Tabac, municipality of Aldama, Chiapas, where she currently struggles between life and death.
As the Fray Bartolomé de Las Casas Center1 reports, the shots were fired from several points in the community of Santa Martha, municipality of Chenalhó. During the month of March, 291 attacks directed at the communities of Aldama have been registered.
The Zapatista National Liberation Army issued a warning on September 19, 2021: Chiapas was on the brink of civil war. All levels of the Mexican government, (Federal, State, and Municipal) with their backing of paramilitary armed groups, have fueled violent attacks, killing and wounding members of the Zapatista and Indigenous communities, burning and pillaging Indigenous community property, and forcing the displacement of thousands2.
The EZLN stated,
In light of the action and negligence of the state and federal authorities in the face of the current and previous crimes, we will take the necessary measures to bring the criminals of ORCAO and the officials who sponsor them.
That is all. On another occasion there will be no communiqué. That is, there will not be words, but actions.
On March 3, 2022, the three levels of government of the Mexican State announced the transfer of land to the communities of Aldama, a measure that pretends to bring peace. The FRAYBA manifested:
«The Mexican State forgets the concerns put on the table by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) since April 23, 2021»
The IACHR recognized the cycle of violence experienced by the communities of Aldama due to constant violent armed attacks. The report mentioned the importance of a concise delimitation of indigenous territories, that give clarity to all inhabitants. It stressed the importance in disarming and dismantling the aggressor group; the need of addressing the conformation, structure and financing of the armed individuals through investigation, punishment, reparation and justice processes.
«The Mexican State only recognizes an agrarian dispute, without acknowledging the other elements of the conflict, which has prevented integral solutions that truly tackle the conflict and cease violence. Government agencies attend to the wounded but do not take preventive measures to safeguard their lives, and have not taken any effective measures to avoid these situations.
We make a strong urgent call to the Mexican State to comply with its obligations and intervene immediately to protect the life, safety and integrity of the Tsotsil inhabitants of the communities of Aldama.
We call for solidarity and summon the national and international community to send their expressions of repudiation in the face of the omission by the Mexican State and the increase in violence in the municipality of Aldama, Chiapas, to:
- Lic. Andrés Manuel López Obrador. Constitutional President of Mexico.
Palacio Nacional-Plaza de la Constitución s/n. – 2° Piso. Col. Centro. Delegación Cuauhtémoc. Cd. de México CP: 06066. Fax. (+52) 55 5093-4800, 55 5093-5300 Exts. 4103/4882.800-080-1127 Atención Ciudadana. Correo: amlo@presidencia.gob.mx y gobmx@funcionpublica.gob.mx
Twitter: @lopezobrador_» declared the FRAYBA.
As of 7:00 a.m. today, reports of gunshots fired between the disputed boundaries of Aldama and Chenalhó were still ongoing.
We’ll continue to report in solidarity with the communities in resistance.
FRAYBA. 25 March 2022. Urgent action. Niña de 9 años herida durante los ataques con arma de fuego hacia las comunidades de Aldama.
Chiapas Support Committee, End the Paramilitary War on Zapatista and Indigenous Communities: Stop all megaprojects and extractive industries on Zapatista and Indigenous territories. 2021.