AMERICA/MEXICO - Violence in Chiapas has become "a public health problem"; an Italian volunteer killed

Wednesday, 14 July 2021 violence   human rights   social situation   corruption   local churches  

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Mexico City (Agenzia Fides) - Violence has not stopped in Chiapas. Michele Colosio, an Italian volunteer, was killed on the evening of Sunday, July 11 near his home in San Cristobal de Las Casas. The victim was allegedly caught by various gunshots exploded by a racing motorcycle.
He was taken to the hospital, he died from the consequences of his injuries. For over 10 years Colosio had been travelling between Italy and Mexico, where he run a small farm and above all he dedicated himself to developing projects for the education of children in the poorest rural areas. He collaborated with the Casa de Salud community Yi'belik'- Raíz del Viento, and was involved in various social projects, in the belief that we must help, live in brotherhood, without distinction of languages, borders and skin. Investigations are underway to clarify the causes of the murder. A few days ago, still in the state of Chiapas, Simón Pedro Pérez López, indigenous Tzozil, catechist of the parish of Santa Catarina, in Pantelho, diocese of San Cristóbal de las Casas, was killed, engaged in the defense of human rights and in the search for justice about the massacre of the indigenous village of Acteal, Chiapas, which took place on December 22, 1997, when a paramilitary group killed 45 people, of the Tzotzil ethnicity. The Bishop of the diocese of San Cristóbal de las Casas, Mgr. Rodrigo Aguilar Martínez, denouncing yet another bloodshed, underlined the suffering of the innocent population, of which the diocese has made itself a spokesperson to the authorities, "but it seems that there are obscure interests that provoke the omission of denunciations ... We are still witnessing, in Chiapas, the reactivation of the forces that have changed from paramilitary to organized crime, allies of the narco-government, who have invaded our State to tame the resistance of organized peoples who defend their autonomy" (see Fides, 7/7/2021).
In a note dated July 11, sent to Fides, the Episcopal Commission, Faith and Social Commitment, expresses its participation "in the pain suffered by our brothers and sisters in the State of Chiapas, due to violence" and underlines that "violence, rooted in the reality of our country, continues to alarm us every day", it is a particularly complex phenomenon, "which has become a public health problem, as it causes damage to its members, diseases, a decrease in the quality of life and, in many cases , ends in murder".
"The violent context that persists in Mexico - continues the note - requires that Christians and people of good penetrate life and the human realities where the following of Jesus is lived in practice. Only in this way will we transform the situations of sin and the structures of injustice, actualizing the ministry of Jesus who comes to restore to each person his or her fundamental dignity. The Christian community has always understood this, which is why it combines the proclamation of the Gospel with the denunciation of injustices, creates actions that defend dignity and rights, and is in solidarity with the poor". The Episcopal Commission for Faith and Social Commitment therefore invites "to return to the fundamental rules of coexistence that generate favorable relationships that allow us to build more fraternal and just societies", characterized by the realization of Peace, "which is not a natural state, but must be built by every person". He also reiterates that "speaking of peace makes no sense if life is destroyed". Violence, hunger, injustice, lies, slavery, war and the devastation of nature "are processes incompatible with the presuppositions of peace and human survival". (SL) (Agenzia Fides, 14/7/2021)


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