Paramilitary Attack Against Zapatista Communities

Paramilitary Attack by OPDDIC against Zapatista Communities
Good Governance Board “Corazón del Arco iris de la Esperanza” (Heart of the Rainbow of Hope)
Caracol 4 “Torbellino de Nuestras Palabras” (Whirlwind of Our Words)

August 12 2007.

To National and International Public Opinion
To the Other Alternative Media, Nationally and Internationally
To Independent Human Rights Organizations
To Compañer@s from the Sexta and the Other Campaign of our country Mexico and of the world
¡¡¡BROTHERS AND SISTERS!!!
¡¡¡COMPAÑEROS AND COMPAÑERAS!!!

The Good Governance Board “Corazón del Arco iris de la Esperanza” (Heart of the Rainbow of Hope), strongly make this present denunciation in the face of such brutal and inhuman acts by the paramilitary organization OPDDIC (Organization For the Defense of Indigenous and Campesino Rights), which occurred on Friday, August 10, 2007, in the territory of the Autonomous Rebellious Zapatista Municipality “Olga Isabel.”

In the community of Ba yulumax located 5 kilometers from the site of our autonomous municipality and 7 kilometers of the official municipality “Chilón,” Chiapas, the following events took place:

On August 10th, approximately at 5:00 pm, the compañero from the Grassroots Support of this community: Leonardo Navarro Jiménez, 52 years old, accompanied by one of his sons, Elías Navarro Jiménez, 11 years old, left their house to visit their cattle that they left tied about 150 meters from their humble home; before arriving at this place, a group of 13 people, members of OPDDIC, interrupted their journey and with excess violence, kidnapped the compañero Leonardo Navarro Jiménez, dragging him 250 meters towards the mountain, carried out by four paramilitaries:

Miguel Jiménez Díaz
Vicente Jiménez Díaz
Jerónimo Jiménez Diaz
Juan Navarro Aguilar

This last one was carrying a machete. These men were accompanied by 4 armed people who are:

Leonardo Navarro Deara who carried a 22-calibre pistol
José Navarro Deara who carried a22-calibre 16-shot automatic rifle
Héctor Navarro Deara who carried a 22-calibre 2-shot rifle
Carlos Navarro Aguilar who carried a 22-calibre 2-shot rifle.

In addition, there was another group of 5 people who are:

Samuel Jiménez Díaz
Andrés Navarro Deara
Marcos Navarro Jiménez
Andrés Navarro Silvano
Marcos Navarro Silvano

The boy Elías Navarro Jiménez, after going through what happened, runs to his house to alert his brothers while his father was being beaten and kicked by these people.
At receiving this news, the family of our compañero Leonardo Navarro Jiménez, runs to his rescue and at arriving at the place where it was happening, they had their path blocked by the same group of aggressors and in this moment, one of the aggressors yells, saying: “Let’s do what we already planned to do…!”

And it was then when held by four people, the compañero Leonardo Navarro Jiménez, was shot by 6 22-caliber bullets, and was seriously injured by three shots, leaving him unconscious. In his body, Leonardo was left with a bullet in his right leg, another in the left side of his torax and another in his upper lip, below the nose. The paramilitary that first shot the compañero Leonardo Navarro Jiménez, with a 22-calibre pistol, is Leonardo Navarro Deara, son of Juan Navarro Aguilar.

One of the compañero Leonardo Navarro Jiménez’s sons, 29-year old Juan Navarro Jiménez, came to help his father, breaking through the barrier that the group of aggressors created, and it was just in this moment, when one of the same people who detained his father, shot him with a 22-calibre 16-shot automatic rifle, injuring him with a shot to the right shoulder and almost at the same time, he received a machete hit injuring him seriously in the right side of his body.

Once our two compañeros were both shot, and Juan Navarro Jiménez injured also by a machete, family members, sons and daughters, and compañera (partner) of Leonardo Navarro Jiménez tried to obtain assistance while these paramilitaries fled to the coffee plants towards the mountain.

Once they saw that Juan Navarro Jiménez was still alive, they took him home, while his father remained lying there, since they thought he was already dead.

At this time, they notified the people of what had happened, and the people of the community went to the house of compañero Juan Navarro Jiménez, while other people went to place where the incident had occurred and where lay the body of Leonardo Navarro Jiménez, who they found with signs of life. So, they took him to the Autonomous Municipal Clinic. Due to the seriousness of the patients’ injuries, they were taken to Ocosingo, to the IMSS, Coplamar, at 8:00 pm, approximately, and then were to be taken to the Tuxtla Gutiérrez general hospital.

We feel indignation and rage that all not be left in impunity, which has happened in the past; in the past months of 2003, this community had received from the bad government a project to cover an opening, of which the family of Leonardo Navarro Jiménez, have not only been deprived of their right to move freely over this opening that goes through their plot of land, but also had their coffee plants destroyed, had their fencing cut down, in addition to the wire that closes in their work area.

In February-March of 2007, this community installed electricity, and this compañero not only was not told this, nor did he get any electricity, but instead had his avocado trees cut down, as well as had his coffee and cacaté plants cut down.

In July of 2007, they destroyed the trees on his plot of land and had his wire fencing cut.

IN THE FACE OF THIS INCIDENTS OF VILE BRUTALITY, OF SUCH SHAMELESS INJUSTICE AND OF THE GREATEST IMPUNITY ON THE PART OF THOSE WHO SAY THEY ARE GOVERNMENTS OF RULE OF LAW, OF THE APPLICATION OF THE LAW AND OF BUILDING PEACE,
IN THE FACE OF THIS MOST COWARDLY AND BRUTAL VIOLATION OF JUSTICE, OF HUMAN RIGHTS:

WE DEMAND THE APPLICATION OF JUSTICE AND IMMEDIATE PUNISHMENT OF THE FOLLOWING PEOPLE RESPONSIBLE OF THESE INCIDENTS:

Miguel Jiménez Díaz
Vicente Jiménez Díaz
Jerónimo Jiménez Díaz
Juan Navarro Aguilar
Leonardo Navarro Deara
José Navarro Deara
Héctor Navarro Deara
Carlos Navarro Aguilar
Samuel Jiménez Díaz
Andrés Navarro Deara
Marcos Navarro Jiménez
Andrés Navarro Silvano
Marcos Navarro Silvano

As well as Sebastián Luna López, Comisariado, Ejidal, from Ejido Mukulum, Bachajón, Jerónimo Jiménez Aguilar, Surveillance Council of the same ejido, Leonardo Moreno Jiménez, municipal coordinator and José Navarro Aguilar, local coordinator of OPDDIC. Since these latter, are those who are promoting these acts of confrontation and division between neighbouring communities.

WHO IN SUCH A CYNICAL MANNER, HAVE INTENDED NOT FOR THE FIRST TIME, TO HARRASS, RAPE AND KILL, OUR COMPAÑEROS, WHO WITH NOTHING IN RETURN, STILL STRUGGLE AND RESIST FOR THOSE WHO ALTHOUGH ARE UNDIGNIFIED NOW; ARE OUR BROTHERS IN RACE AND COLOUR…!

THAT OUR VOICE MAY NEVER BE SILENT IN THE FACE OF TERROR, INJUSTICE, LIES AND DEATH!

WE CONTINUE TO STRUGGLE AND LIVE FOR PEACE, JUSTICE AND DIGNITY!

WE WILL NOT WAIT FOR THE BAD GOVERNMENT TO IMPRISON THESE CRIMINALS AND ASSASINS; WE WILL NOT BE SILENT BUT WILL DEMAND JUSTICE; AND SOONER OR LATER, THOSE WHO LIVE IN IMPUNITY TODAY WILL RECEIVE THEIR PUNISHMENT!

We make a call to the entire world, to the men, women, elders of Good Will, to sister and honest organizations, human rights advocates/defenders, and the Just and True Voice and Word, to demand punishment and the application of justice to those who are the material and intellectual authors of such unfortunate and painful acts.

With this denunciation, we lift our voice and word, to tell the world, the disgraces that are these federal (Felipe Calderón) and state (Juan Sabines) governments; disguised as being respectful, but who really govern the country by imprisoning, assassinating and massacring our brothers and sisters, our compañeros and compañeras, who have always been honest and honourable.

We say, ENOUGH! to the bad government, of impunity to the Human Rights violations and violations to Constitutional Rights.

ENOUGH! of using our indigenous and campesino brothers—who live in misery, suffer injustice and paramilitarization—to help you massacre our poor and working people.

FOR PEACE, JUSTICE AND HUMANITY!
Our pain will flower and will never stop demanding freedom.

SINCERELY,

Caracol 4 “Torbellino de Nuestras Palabras” (Whirlwind of Our Words), Morelia, Chiapas, México, August, 2007.
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Violence against women from zapatista grassroots communities

Autonomous rebellious zapatista municipality de la Paz.
Caracol V that speaks for all.

August 6, 2007.

To independent human rights organizations.
To independent women’s organizations.
To the nacional and international civil society.

Receive greestings from the women’s group of the autonomous municipality de la paz, in the northern region of chiapas. We are a group of indigenous women of all of the communities of this municipality that are united to defend our rights as zapatista women and to follow the example of our compañera Ramona.

We direct our attention to you in order to denounce that on August 2, 3007, people that are against our zapatista organization burnt the house of our compañera María López Peñate, who lives alone with her daughter in the community of Francisco villa, which is recuperated land since 1994. but they were not aware of this because they were working in their frijolar and only until 3 in the afternoon did they see that they was smoke and they went to see what was happening, but the only thing that they were able to save were some chickens that were in the patio. Now our compañera Maria is very sad and worried due to everything that they burnt: her corn, her blankets, her money, her dishes, her grinder, her birth certificate, her seed to plant her garden, her salt and her machete. In addition, in the communities of this municipality we are threatened by blackouts and because they want to evict us from our lands. And we women suffer more because we are in fear of being raped.

These problems which are living are because the bad government does not want our autonomous organization to exist and wants to breed fear in order to discourage us. But we will not be discouraged. We will continue to organize ourselves more as zapatista women together with our compañeros.

The women’s group of the autonomous municipality de la paz asks you compañeros y compañeras in solidarity to be alert to our situation because fighting together against the government they cannot finish us off.

We demand respect for our rights as women and as indigenous peoples.

¡Ramona vive, la lucha sigue! Ramona lives, the struggle continues!
The women’s group of the autonomous municipality de la Paz
Autonomous council of the marez La Paz.
Good governance board new seed that will produce.
http://enlacezapatista.ezln.org.mx
http://otravancouver.resist.ca