STATEMENT National Network of WHRDs in Mexico / We demand justice for the extrajudicial execution of Meztli Sarabia and effective protection for her family and UPVA members

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Mexico, July 6, 2017

Issue:
We demand justice for the extrajudicial execution of Meztli Sarabia
and effective protection for her family and UPVA members

Miguel Ángel Osorio Chong
Secretary of the Interior

Roberto Campa Cifrián
Under Secretary of Human Rights of the Ministry of the Interior

Patricia Colchero Aragonés
National Executive Coordinator of the Mechanism to Protect Human Rights Defenders and Journalists

Raúl Cervantes Andrade
Attorney General of Mexico

The human rights defender Meztli Omixóchitl Sarabia Reyna, secretary of the October 28th People’s Street Vendors Union (UPVA) and daughter of Rubén Sarabia Sánchez (known as Simitrio), a political prisoner and founder of the organization, was extrajudicially executed on the morning of June 29th in the city of Puebla.

A group of four armed men burst into the UPVA offices (located in the Hidalgo Market), subdued and beat three people who were present and shot the 40-year-old defender, first in the abdomen, and then in the head.

This was undeniably a political assassination: It happened while UPVA members were demonstrating at the court hearing of political prisoner Xihuel Sarabia Reyna, the son of Simitrio1; moreover, before taking Meztli’s life, the killers told her to “Tell Simitrio he better stop fucking with us,” and left behind a poster that read “This is what happens to Simitrio’s followers. 28th get out. Extortionists”.

It should be noted that the Attorney General of the state of Puebla says that a credential of the Secretary of National Defense (SEDENA), was found at the crime scene. Likewise, an armed man carrying credentials with different names (one issued by SEDENA and the other by the Ministry of the Interior of the state of Puebla). Something similar happened at the funeral, where a man was discovered with a card that identified him as a government official of the state of Puebla.

It is also important to note that Meztli Sarabia’s killers shot another UPVA member, Fredy Barrientos Corona, who fell into a coma induced by the gunshots he received in his head and arm. The defender is now hospitalized in a private clinic in critical condition with an uncertain prognosis, after having been denied medical attention at the Rafael Moreno Valle Hospital of Traumatology and Orthopedics on the pretext of a lack of personnel and equipment.

We, the 222 women defenders and journalists who make up the National Network of Women Human Rights Defenders in Mexico (RNDDHM), repudiate the cowardly murder of Meztli Sarabia, a defender of the right to work and a single mother with three young children, and we also repudiate the efforts of the Attorney General of the state of Puebla to associate her with small-scale drug dealing, thereby laying the way for impunity.

This crime could have been avoided, like those against many other women defenders and journalists in Mexico, including the four comrades killed thus far in 2017.2

In the case of Meztli Sarabia, the Mexican government knew about the serious risk that she, her family, and other UPVA members faced. In a meeting held in April of 2016, the RNDDHM and the Mesoamerican Initiative of Women Human Rights Defenders (IM-Defensoras) warned Roberto Campa, the Under Secretary of Human Rights of the Ministry of the Interior of Mexico, of the attempt on Meztli Sarabia’s life on April 5th of that year, when she was beaten and threatened with death. We also informed him of the criminalization, death threats and smear campaigns against UPVA Director Rita Amador López. In the same meeting, a request was made to incorporate these two defenders into the Mechanism to Protect Human Rights Defenders and Journalists, a request that was ignored.

BACKGROUND

Since the UPVA was formed on October 28, 1973, it has undergone different types of political repression for which impunity prevails. One of the most recent attacks was the attempt on Meztli Sarabia Reyna’s life on April 5, 2016, when she was beaten and threatened with death by two armed men who said they were ministerial police.3 Complaints were presented at the Attorney General’s Office (Preliminary Investigation 563/2016) and the Human Rights Commission in the state of Puebla,4 with no resulting actions taken.

Another emblematic case is that of Rita Amador, UPVA leader and Simitrio’s companion, who has faced repeated attacks, including smear campaigns. Furthermore, like María de la Luz Gálvez Javier, a member of the UPVA Liaison Committee and wife of Xihuel Sarabia Reyna (Meztli’s brother), Rita has been prosecuted on trumped up charges. The same is true of UPVA members, Sergio León López and Silverio Montes Silva.

Furthermore, María de la Luz Gálvez has been the victim of death threats that have also been made against the children she has in common with Xihuel Sarabia. In 2016, she received several telephone calls from an alleged licensed professional named José, who told her he had been paid to kill her and her children. In a second group of phone calls, unidentified persons threatened to kill her father-in-law (Simitrio), her brother-in-law and her husband. She later received text messages that revealed espionage activities against her children; she was told where they were, what they were wearing and what they were doing.

In 2014, UPVA member and Meztli’s half-sister Claudia Alejandra López Reyna, was also a victim of violence. Together with other members of the Sarabia family, she was illegally arrested and tortured to persuade her to accuse Xihuel Sarabia and Atl Tonatiuh Rubén Sarabia Reyna, her half-brothers, of small-scale drug-dealing.

It is important to note that five UPVA members are now imprisoned for political motives, including Meztli’s father and brothers. They are: Rubén Sarabia Sánchez, Atl Tonatiuh Rubén Sarabia Reyna, Xihuel Sarabia Reyna, Luis Fernando Alonso Rodríguez and José Muñoz Villegas.

We, the members of RNDDHM, are convinced that Meztli’s extrajudicial execution is part of a systematic pattern of repression against UPVA members, with special emphasis on the organization’s founding family. The goal is to oblige them to drop their defense of the human rights of street vendors to decent employment and to guarantees of the right of free association.

We also recall that based on the politically motivated imprisonment of several of its members, the UPVA, both locally and nationally, has fostered the struggle against the criminalization and for the liberation of those involved in social protests, helping to build ties between the collectives of families and friends of political prisoners in Mexico.

For the above reasons, we, the 222 women defenders and journalists organized in this Network, demand that the Mexican State do the following:

  1. Investigate and delineate responsibilities of the masterminds and perpetrators of the extrajudicial execution of Meztli Sarabia.

  2. Safeguard the life and the physical and psychological integrity of defenders Rita Amador López, María de la Luz Gálvez Javier, Claudia López Reyna and Ana María Rosas Porto, as well as other UPVA members and families.

  3. Guarantee these defenders and UPVA members the full exercise of the right to defend human rights in conditions of security and equality.

  4. Immediately implement protective measures that are effective, permanent and gender-focused for Rita Amador, María de la Luz Gálvez, Claudia López and Ana María Rosas; these measures must be approved by the defenders and must also be true guarantees of their lives and integrity.

  5. Incorporate these women defenders into the Mechanism to Protect Human Rights Defenders and Journalists, as previously demanded.

  6. Pay for the medical expenses of defender Fredy Barrientos Corona.

We hold the Mexican government responsible for any attempt against the lives and integrity of the women defenders referred to in this statement, their families, and other UPVA members.

Cordially,

National Network of Women Human Rights Defenders in Mexico

Agnieszka Raczynska (Economic, Social and Cultural Rights Project (PRODESC), Mexico City); Aidé García (Catholics for the Right to Decide, Mexico City); Alba Cruz (Committee for the Comprehensive Defense of Human Rights Gobixha (CÓDIGO DH), Oaxaca); Aleida Quintana (Tékéi Interdisciplinary Group, Querétaro); Alejandra Ancheita (Economic, Social and Cultural Rights Project (PRODESC), Mexico City); Alejandra Nuño (Independent, Mexico City); Alexandra Garita (Independent, Mexico City); Alicia Leal Puerta, (Peaceful Alternatives, Mexico City); Aline Castellanos (Instruments for Good Living, Oaxaca); Alma Ángelica Barraza Gómez (Sinaloa); Alma Padilla García (Chiapas Center for Women’s Rights, Chiapas); Alma Delia Rodriguez Alor (We’ll Have Wings Organization, Veracruz); Amelia Guadalupe Ojeda Sosa (Psychological, Sexological and Educational Attention Unit for Personal Growth, (UNASSE), Yucatán); América del Valle Ramírez (Peoples’ Front in Defense of the Land (FPDT-Atenco), State of México); Ana Karen López Quintana (Tamaulipas Trans Vihda Diversity, Tamaulipas); Ana Lidia Murillo Camacho (Sinaloan Association of University Women, Sinaloa); Ana María Hernández Cárdenas (Consortium for Parliamentary Dialogue and Equity in Oaxaca, Oaxaca); Anaís Palacios Pérez (Collective for Peace, Xalapa Region, Veracruz); Analia Penchaszadeh (Association for the Rights of Women in Development (AWID); Andrea Eugenio Manuel (Organization of Me’phaa Indigenous People (OPIM), Guerrero); Ángeles López (Victoria Diez Center for Human Rights, Guanajuato); Angélica Araceli Reveles (Latin American and Caribbean Committee for the Defense of Women’s Rights, CLADEM-México); Atziri Ávila (Mexico City); Aurora Montaño (Independent, Mexico City); Axela Romero Cárdenas (Mesoamerican Initiative for Women Human Rights Defenders, Mexico City); Beatriz Hernández Bautista (Nduva Ndandi Professional Circle for Formation with Gender Equity, Oaxaca); Bettina Cruz Velázquez (Indigenous Peoples’ Assembly of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec in Defense of Land and Territory, Oaxaca); Blanca Martínez (Fray Juan de Larios Diocesan Center for Human Rights, Coahuila); Blanca Mesina (Baja California); Blanca Velázquez (Worker Support Center (CAT), Puebla); Carina González Luis (March 8th Women’s Group , Oaxaca); Carolina Cantú (Coordination of Indigenous and Afro-Mexican Women in Guerrero); Carolina Coppel Urrea (Ambulante Más Allá (documentary film), Mexico City); Carolina Ramírez (Aura , Veracruz); Cecilia Espinosa Martínez (Women’s Roundtable Network, Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua); Cecilia Oyorzabal Gómez (Timomatchtikan Agency, Puebla); Cirenia Celestino Ortega (Women’s Communication and Information (CIMAC), Mexico City); Clara G. Meyra Segura (Human rights defender, Mexico City); Claudia Erika Centeno Zaldívar (Independent, Mexico City); Clemencia Correa (Psychosocial Accompaniment Project ALUNA, Mexico City); Concepción Felix Corral (Yes, There Are Women in Durango, Durango); Consuelo Morales (Citizens in Support of Human Rights (CADHAC), Nuevo León); Cristina Auerbach (Pasta de Conchos Family, Coahuila); Cristina Cruz López (Bartolomé Carrasco Regional Center for Human Rights (BARCADH); Cristina Hardaga Fernández (USAID, Mexico City);  Dalí Ángel Pérez, (Indigenous Women for the Conservation, Research and Use of Natural Resources (CIARENA), Oaxaca); Daphne Cuevas (Consortium for Parliamentary Dialogue and Equity, Mexico City); Diana Carolina Brito Bahena (Independent, Guerrero); Diana Damián Palencia (Formation and Training (FOCA), Chiapas); Diana López Santiago (Fray Francisco de Vitoria Center for Human Rights, Mexico City); Dolores González (Services and Consulting for Peace, (SERAPAZ), Mexico City); Dora Ávila (Nääxwiin Center for Women’s Rights, Oaxaca); Elena Tapia Vásquez (Committee for the Comprehensive Defense of Human Rights Gobixha (CÓDIGO DH), Oaxaca); Elga Aguilar (Cerezo Committee México, Mexico City); Elizabeth Ferreras (Vereda Themis Legal Defense and Education for Women, Mexico City); Elizabeth Robles (Service, Development and Peace, Coahuila); Emelia Ortiz (If they aren’t here, all of us aren´t here Campaign, Oaxaca); Esmeralda López Martínez (March 8th Women’s Group , Oaxaca); Estrella Soria (Independent, Mexico City); Fabiola González Barrera (Women’s Communication and Information (CIMAC), Mexico City); Fátima Ojeda (Consortium for Parliamentary Dialogue and Equity Oaxaca, Oaxaca); Felicitas Martínez Solano (Regional Coordination of Community Authorities- Community Police (CRAC-PC), Guerrero); Flavia Ester Anau (Piña Palmera Chidren’s Attention Center, Oaxaca); Gabriela Aguilar Martín (Latin American and Caribbean Committee for the Defense of Women’s Rights, CLADEM - Mexico City); Gabriela Morales Gracia (Fray Matías de Córdova Center for Human Rights, Mexico City); Georgina Vargas Vera (Guanajuato); Gloria Muñoz Ramírez (Desinformémonos, Mexico City); Griselda Sánchez Miguel (Oaxaca); Guadalupe García Álvarez (Women: Struggles and Rights for All, State of Mexico); Guadalupe Hernández Hernández (Fray Francisco de Vitoria Center for Human Rights, Mexico City); Guadalupe López (Lesbians in Patlatonalli, Jalisco); Harmida Rubio Gutiérrez (Veracruz);Hermelinda Tiburcio Cayetano (Kinal Antzetik, Guerrero); Icela Jaimes (Root Collective, Aguascalientes); Imelda Marrufo (Women’s Roundtable Network, Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua); Indira de Jesús Luis Aquino (Oaxaca); Ingrid López Miguel (Bartolomé Carrasco Regional Center for Human Rights (BARCADH), Oaxaca); Irma Estrada Martínez (Metropolitan Autonomous University, Mexico City); Ixchel Carrasco Arias (Communication and Training Liaison, Guerrero); Isela González Díaz (Sierra Madre Alliance, Chihuahua); Janette Corzo (APRENDAMOS /LET’S LEARN); Jaqueline Santana (Independent, Mexico City); Johana Belén Sánchez Rojas (Fray Francisco de Vitoria Center for Human Rights, Mexico City); Josefina Chávez (Feminist Notebooks, Mexico City); Juliana García Quintanilla (Independent Human Rights Commission of Morelos, Morelos); Julieta Hernández Camargo (Yes, There Are Women in Durango, Durango); Julisa Bivian Luis Hernández (March 8th Women’s Group, Oaxaca); Laura Carlsen (Program of the Americas, Mexico City); Laura García (Semillas, Mexico City); Laura Gutiérrez (Olympia United Women of Gouges, Baja California); Laura Salas (La Sandía Digital / Digital Watermelon, Mexico City); Laura Velázquez (Just Associates (JASS), Mexico City); Lenika Morales Zavaleta (Liquidámbar Collective / Enrique Guerrero Collective, Mexico City); Leticia Burgos (Sonoran Feminist Network, Sonora); Lydia Alpizar (Association for the Rights of Women in Development (AWID), Mexico City); Lydia Cacho (Independent, Mexico City); Lorena Wolffer (Mexico City); Lorena Fuentes (Semillas / Seeds, Mexico City); Lorena Peralta (Aluna, Mexico City); Loreto Bravo (Palabra Radio, Oaxaca); Lucía Lagunes Huerta (Women’s Communication and Information (CIMAC), Mexico City); Lulú V. Barrera (Women in Struggle, Mexico City); María Hilda de la Vega (Women for Mexico in Chihuahua, Chihuahua); Magdalena Santos (Bartolomé Carrasco Regional Center for Human Rights (BARCADH), Oaxaca); Malú García Andrade (Bring our Daughters Home, Chihuahua); María Luisa Aguilar Rodríguez (Mountain Center for Human Rights, Tlachinollan, Guerrero); Margarita Avalos (Ollin Calli Collective, Baja California); Margarita Guadalupe Martínez Martínez (Independent, Chiapas); María Guadalupe Ramos Ponce (Latin American and Caribbean Committee for the Defense of Women’s Rights, CLADEM -México, Jalisco); María Paula Castañeda (Independent, Mexico City); María Rosa Guzmán Valdez (Indigenous Women’s Human Rights Promoters Network in the state of Jalisco, Jalisco); María Trinidad Ramírez (Peoples’ Front in Defense of the Land(FPDT-Atenco), State of Mexico); Martha Figueroa (Mujeres Libres / Free Women, Colem, Chiapas); Martha Pérez Pineda (Peoples’ Front in Defense of the Land(FPDT-Atenco), State of Mexico); Martha Sánchez Soler (Mesoamerican Migrant Movement, Mexico City); Marusia López (Just Associates (JASS), Mexico City); Matilde Pérez Romero (José María Morelos y Pavón Regional Center for the Defense of Human Rights in Chilapa de Álvarez, Guerrero); Mayela García Ramírez (Collective for Research, Development and Education for Women, Veracruz); Melissa A. Vertiz Hernández (Fray Franciso de Vitoria Center for Human Rights, Mexico City); Mercedes Olivera Bustamente (Center for Women’s Rights in Chiapas, Chiapas); Minerva Nora Martínez (Bartolomé Carrasco Regional Center for Human Rights (BARCADH), Oaxaca); Miriam González Sánchez (Institute for Women in Migration (IMUMI), Mexico City); Montserrat Díaz (Feminist Collective of Xalapa, Veracruz); Nadia Maciel (Guerrero); Nadín Reyes Maldonado (‘Until We Find Them’ Family Members of the Disappeared and Detained, Mexico City); Nallely Tello (Consortium for Parliamentary Dialogue and Equity Oaxaca, Oaxaca); Nancy Pérez (Sin Fronteras/Without Borders , Mexico City); Nerida Gaspar Castillo (Ollin Calli Collective, Baja California); Nora Bucio (Women’s Communication and Information (CIMAC), Morelos); Nora María Vargas Contreras (Women Stand in Solidarity (EMAS), Michoacán); Norma Mesino (Campesino Organization of the Sierra del Sur (OCSS), Guerrero);Obtilia Eugenio Manuel (Organization of Me’phaa Indigenous People (OPIM), Guerrero); Ofelia Cesáreo Sánchez (Coordination of Indigenous and Afro-Mexican Women in Guerrero); Orfe Castillo (Just Associates (JASS), Mexico City); Paloma Estrada Muñoz (Independent Human Rights Commission of Morelos , Morelos); Patricia Matías López (Piña Palmera Children’s Attention Center, Oaxaca); Patricia Yllescas (Independent, Mexico City); Reyna Martínez Hernández (Bartolomé Carrasco Regional Center for Human Rights (BARCADH), Oaxaca); Reyna Ramírez Sánchez, To Tlaktole Calaki Mo Yolo Defiant Women Workers Collective, Puebla; Rogelia González Luis (March 8th Women’s Group, Oaxaca); Rosa María Laguna Gómez (Latin American and Caribbean Committee for the Defense of Women’s Rights, CLADEM -México, Jalisco); Rosario Pacheco Leal (Peaceful Alternatives, Nuevo León); Ruth Fierro (Women’s Center for Human Rights (CEDEHM), Chihuahua); Sanjuana Martínez (Nuevo León); Salomé Almaráz (Fray Francisco de Vitoria Center for Human Rights, Mexico City); Sandra Peniche (Humanitarian Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare Services, Yucatán); Sara Méndez (Committee for the Comprehensive Defense of Human Rights Gobixha (CÓDIGO DH), Oaxaca); Sara Montes Ramírez (Root Collective, Aguascalientes); Sayuri Herrera Román (Independent, Mexico City); Silvia Alejandra Holguín Cinco (Women’s Center for Human Rights (CEDEHM), Chihuahua); Silvia Castillo Salgado (Guerrero Center for Human Rights, Guerrero); Silvia Núñez Esquer (Sonora); Silvia Pérez Yescas (Indigenous Women for the Conservation, Research and Use of Natural Resources (CIARENA) Oaxaca); Siria Solís Solís (El Barzón Chihuahua, Chihuahua); Susana Mejía (Women’s Consulting and Development Center (CADEM), Puebla); Tania Ramírez (Director of the University of the Claustro Sor Juana, Program on Human Rights and Peace /Children for Identity and Justice, against Forgetting and Silence (H.I.J.O.S.) Mexico City); Teresa Emeterio Martínez (Consortium for Parliamentary Dialogue and Equity in Oaxaca, Oaxaca); Teresa Guardián (Cherán, Michoacán); Teresa Zúñiga (Mexican Institute for Community Development (IMDEC), Jalisco); Valentina Rosendo Cantú (Guerrero); Verónica Cruz (Las Libres/Free Women, Guanajuato); Verónica Rodríguez Jorge (Independent, Mexico City); Verónica Vidal (Association for the Rights of Women in Development (AWID), Mexico City); Ximena Andión (EQUIS: Justice for Women, Mexico City); Ximena Cortez (Rosas Chillante Feminist Socialist Collective, Mexico City); Xóchitl Ramírez (Yotlakat Non Siwatl, Atzin Community Development, Guerrero); Yanimiriam Valdez Baca (Women’s Center for Human Rights (CEDEHM), Chihuahua); Yanina Flores (Semillas / Seeds, Mexico City); Yesica Sánchez Maya (Consortium for Parliamentary Dialogue and Equity in Oaxaca, Oaxaca); Zulma Méndez (Cultural Pact and Women’s Roundtable Network, Chihuahua); Janahuy Paredes Lachino (Family Members of the Disappeared and Detained in Mexico, Michoacán), Vianeth Rojas Arenas (Citizens’ Observatory on Sexual and Reproductive Rights, Puebla); Silvia Villaseñor Pineda (Tiyat Tlali Council in Defense of Life and Territory, Puebla); Diana Pérez (Tiyat Tlali Council in Defense of Life and Territory, Puebla); Rita Amador (October 28th People’s Street Vendors Union, UPVA), Puebla; Irene Noriega Papaqui (Cholollan Committee in Defense of Human Rights, Puebla); Artemisa Castro Félix (Solidarity Action Fund, Baja California Sur); Jaqueline Campbell Dávila (Saltillo Diocese, Coahuila); Ivonne Mendoza Salazar (Center for the Comprehensive Development of Women, Chihuahua); Yolanda Barranco (Committee of Family and Friends of Damián Gallardo Martínez, Oaxaca); Rocío Olivera Toro Maya (Independent, Oaxaca); Flor Goche (Consortium for Parliamentary Dialogue and Equity in Oaxaca); Claudia Yanet Figueroa Sánchez (Independent, Veracruz); Nestora Salgado García (Regional Coordination of Community Authorities- Community Police (CRAC-PC), Guerrero));  Jade Ramírez (Independent, Guadalajara); Fabiola Mancilla (Scalabrinianas Mission for Migrants and Refugees and Services and Consulting for Peace, SERAPAZ, Mexico City); Josefina Araceli Valencia Toledano, El Clóset de Sor Juana, Mexico City); Olga Guzmán (Mexican Commission for the Defense and Promotion of Human Rights (CMDPDH), Mexico City); Nancy López (Mexican Commission for the Defense and Promotion of Human Rights (CMDPDH), Mexico City); María Martín (Just Associates (Jass), Mexico City); Elvia González del Pliego Dorantes (Gender Equality Program, Ibero-American University, Mexico City); Alma García (Foundation for Justice and Democratic Rule of Law, Mexico City); Ana Lorena Delgadillo (Foundation for Justice and Democratic Rule of Law, Mexico City); Dirce Navarrete Pérez (Semillas Fund and Las Enredadas Collective, Mexico City); Elsa Arista González (Mexican League for the Defense of Human Rights, LIMEDDH, Mexico City); Corina del Carmen Arriola Romero (Independent, Mexico City); Denise González Núñez (Human Rights Program of the Ibero-American University, Mexico City); Itzel Silva (Fundar Center of Analysis and Research, Mexico City); Daniela Pastrana, (On-the-Ground Journalists, Mexico City), Yadira Cortés (Women’s Roundtable Network, Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua); Itzel González (Women’s Roundtable Network, Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua); Rotmi Enciso (Productions and Miracles Feminist Group, Mexico City); Gabriela Zanabria (Voices of Lilith Collective, State of Mexico).

C.c.p. Adolfo López Badillo, presidente de la Comisión de Derechos Humanos del Estado de Puebla

C.c.p. Luis Raúl González Pérez, presidente de la Comisión Nacional de los Derechos Humanos (CNDH)

C.c.p. Rodrigo Santiago Juárez, director del Programa de Agravios a Periodistas y Defensores de Derechos Humanos de la CNDH

C.c.p. Angélica de la Peña Gómez, presidenta de la Comisión de Derechos Humanos de la Cámara de Senadores

C.c.p. Jan Jarab, representante en México de la oficina del Alto Comisionado de las Naciones Unidas para los Derechos Humanos

C.c.p. Michel Forst, UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights Defenders

C.c.p. José de Jesús Orozco Henríquez, Rapporteur on the Rights of Human Rights Defenders of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights

C.c.p. Dubravka Dubravka Šimonović, UN Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women, Its Causes and Consequences

1 Founder and leader of the UPVA, made up of around 3,000 people. A descendant of leaders of the Railroad Workers Union, he has been subjected to a long string of abuses in reprisal for his activity in defense of human rights, including death threats, beatings and torture. His case is also emblematic of the judicial prosecution of the social struggle in Mexico. From 1978 to 1979 he was a political prisoner, and from 1989 to 2001, as well. In December of 2014 he was jailed again, accused of parole violations in the 1989 case 113/1989; while in prison, a case was fabricated against him for small-scale drug sales. He is still a prisoner (under house arrest for the last three months due to his precarious state of health), despite the fact that he was granted a protective writ last June due to lack of evidence connecting him to the offense attributed to him.

2 Miroslava Breach Velducea (Chihuahua), Emma Gabriela Molina Canto (Yucatán), Miriam Elizabeth Rodríg.uez Martínez (Tamaulipas) and Jeniffer López (Guerrero).

4 Adolfo López Badillo, President of the Human Rights Commission of Puebla, stated that the complaint filed by Meztli in April of 2016 did not prosper because she did not present sufficient evidence. Consult statement at: http://www.lajornadadeoriente.com.mx/2017/07/03/meztli-no-presento-pruebas-suficientes-cuando-denuncio-acoso-dice-ombudsman/

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