Carlos Mayorga Guerrero, 65, was murdered in his home on 22 November 2018. His body showed signs of having been tortured.

Carlos was a member of the Movement for Peace, Justice and Common Good of Amatán and was the Municipal President of this municipality in Chiapas from 1989 to 1991. He opposed the government of Manuel Velasco Coello. Carlos’s murder took place a few hours after plans to form a Popular Government Council for the municipality was announced.

Members of the Movement pointed out that since starting to protest against the cacicazgo or chieftainship of the Carpio Mayorga family the previous November, the presence of armed groups who intimidate the locals had increased.

On 11 November, Amnesty International sent a letter to Governor Manuel Velasco Coello to request the urgent implementation of effective measures to protect the lives and integrity of members of the Independent Regional Peasant Movement, a member organization of the Plan Ayala National Coordination Movement (MOCRI-CNPA-MN for its Spanish acronym) in the municipality of Amatán. The organization had reported its concern over members of MOCRI-CNPA-MN being harrassed, threatened and attacked as a result of their legitimate work defending their territory, the environment and access to land. The MOCRI-CNPA, together with those who live in Amatán, have denounced since last year the cacicazgo of brothers Manuel de Jesús and Wilbert Carpio Mayorga, who have controlled the administration of the municipal government since 2001.

Source: Sin Embargo