Padre Marcelo Perez, Catholic priest, noted human rights defender, assassinated in southern Mexico
Molly Molloy
MEXICO CITY — A Roman Catholic priest who was a leading voice for peace and conciliation in Mexico’s strife-torn southern Chiapas state was assassinated Sunday after celebrating Mass, authorities said, sparking a wave of denunciations throughout the country.
Two assailants on a motorcycle fired at Father Marcelo Pérez, 41, who was found dead inside a vehicle in the city of San Cristóbal de las Casas, according to prosecutors in Chiapas.
The priest had received multiple threats on his life as he advocated for peace in Mexico’s poorest state, which borders Guatemala and is a major transit point for U.S.-bound illegal drugs and migrants, as well as arms destined for Mexican gangs.
Mexico’s two largest criminal syndicates — the Sinaloa and the Jalisco New Generation cartels — are at war for smuggling routes in Chiapas, authorities say, often buying the allegiance of smaller criminal bands that operate throughout the state.
The ongoing conflict has forced thousands to flee for their lives, including more than 500 villagers who fled Chiapas into Guatemala in July. Some villages and towns in Chiapas have been left almost deserted.
“Chiapas is a time bomb,” Pérez told Mexico’s Aristegui Noticias in September, when he was among thousands who took part in a Pilgrimage for Peace in Tuxtla Gutiérrez, the state capital. “There are many disappeared, many kidnappings, many murders because of the presence of organized crime. ... Against this wave of violence, we seek peace.”
Human rights activists condemned the priest’s killing and called on officials to identify and arrest the assassins and whoever ordered the murder. Religious leaders and others also demanded that the government take action to stem the violence in Chiapas, where well-armed gangs far outnumber police and soldiers tasked with enforcing the law.
“We reject any effort to minimize this deed as an isolated case and we make an urgent call to authorities for the restoration of order in Chiapas,” the Jesuit Order in Mexico said in a statement. “Organized crime has caused fear and pain in diverse parts of the country, and Chiapas is not an exception. The violence in this region reflects a structural problem that demands an integral and urgent response from the state.”
Pérez was a native of Chiapas and, like much of the state’s population, was of Indigenous Mayan roots, a member of the Tzotzil-speaking culture. He had long intervened in struggles affecting the Indigenous poor in the state. Church officials transferred Pérez to San Cristóbal de las Casas, the historic colonial city at the heart of the Indigenous highlands, after he received death threats at postings in rural parishes where he had previously been assigned.
“For decades, Father Marcelo has been a symbol of resistance and support in Chiapas, defending the dignity, the rights of the people, and the construction of an authentic peace,” the Jesuit Order said.
Authorities vowed to track down Pérez’s killers, though officials did not immediately name any suspects.
“There will not be impunity,” declared Rosa Icela Rodríguez Velázquez, Mexico’s chief of security, in a statement on X. “Our solidarity [is] with the Catholic community.”
Tamping down Mexico’s violence is a major challenge for President Claudia Sheinbaum, who took office Oct. 1. Her predecessor and mentor, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, downplayed the problem of violence in Chiapas, saying that reports of rising crime in the southern state were exaggerated.
Special correspondent Cecilia Sánchez Vidal contributed to this report.
Catholic priest and Indigenous activist Pérez killed by 2 gunmen in southern Mexico
TAPACHULA, Mexico (AP) — Catholic priest Marcelo Pérez, an activist for Indigenous peoples and farm laborers in southern Mexico, was killed on Sunday.
The prosecutors’ office in the city of San Cristóbal de las Casas, in the state of Chiapas, said the religious leader was shot dead by two gunmen when he was in his van.
Pérez was a member of the Tzotzil Indigenous people and had just finished serving a Mass when he was attacked. He served the community for two decades and was known as a negotiator in conflicts in a mountainous region of Chiapas where crime, violence and land disputes are rife.
Pérez also led several marches against violence, which has brought him several death threats.
Chipas Gov. Rutilio Escandón posted on X that he condemned “the cowardly assassination of father Marcelo Pérez.
“We will collaborate with all the authorities so his death doesn’t go unpunished and those guilty face the courts,” Escandón said.
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https://www.elsoldemexico.com.mx/republica/quien-era-el-padre-marcelo-perez-12738933.html
Padre Marcelo: un ferviente defensor de los derechos indígenas en Chiapas
En su última entrevista con la Organización Editorial Mexicana, el padre Marcelo señaló que su lucha contra la injusticia sería permanente en Chiapas, aunque que le costara la cárcel o la vida
El Padre Marcelo Pérez Pérez marcho con pobladores en un la que pidieron por la paz en este municipio / Isabel Mateos / Cuartoscuro.com
El Heraldo de Chiapas
Hijo de padres campesinos, el padre Marcelo Pérez Pérez nació en la comunidad de Chichelalhó, en San Andrés Larráinzar, Chiapas.
Estudió en el seminario y se ordenó sacerdote el 6 de abril de 2002, iniciando sus actividades eclesiásticas como párroco de Chenalhó. Tuvo contacto con sobrevivientes de Acteal, una masacre que ocurrió en 1997.
Durante décadas fue un activista en favor de los derechos humanos y por más de 10 años permaneció en Simojovel.
Este domingo en la mañana fue asesinado por dos sujetos a bordo de una motocicleta cuando había salido de oficiar una misa.
Coordinaba la Pastoral Social de la Provincia de Chiapas, que integra las Diócesis de los municipios de San Cristóbal de Las Casas, Tapachula y Tuxtla Gutiérrez y apoyaba a organizaciones y grupos indígenas religiosos.
Coordinaba la Pastoral Social de la Provincia de Chiapas, que integra las Diócesis de los municipios de San Cristóbal de Las Casas, Tapachula y Tuxtla Gutiérrez y apoyaba a organizaciones y grupos indígenas religiosos.
Dirigió peregrinaciones y actividades sobre la salud, la pobreza y la violencia en Simojovel. Y vivió amenazas y difamaciones.
En su última entrevista con El Heraldo de Chiapas, de Organización Editorial Mexicana, el padre Marcelo señaló que su lucha contra la injusticia era y sería permanente en Chiapas, aunque que le costara la cárcel o la vida.
Lee más: Acteal a gran escala: la amenaza que se delinea en Chiapas
“En el desempeño de mi responsabilidad pastoral no le he hecho daño a nadie, he protestado en contra de la injusticia y he defendido la vida”, dijo en esa entrevista.
El párroco de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, de la Diócesis de San Cristóbal de las Casas, recordaba al sacerdote Diego Andrés, de los Estados Unidos, con quién estuvo cinco años en un internado donde descubrió su vocación para el sacerdocio que estudió en Tuxtla Gutiérrez, siendo de esta región Monseñor Felipe Arizmendi Esquivel, ahora Cardenal, quien lo invitó a regresar a su diócesis.
"Dios me ha mostrado el servicio que debo de hacer, primero un mandado divino de defender la vida, si tengo que dar la vida por defenderla estoy dispuesto. Me ha tocado estar donde está la vivencia de la palabra de Dios, el espíritu de los profetas está en Acteal y en las comunidades, al ser defensor de la vida humana y en general, la defensa de la tierra y el territorio, ante la presencia del crimen organizado, no me ha tocado mediar en la resolución de conflictos para para construir la paz”, expuso el presbítero.
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Thanks to Christine for sharing this reflection on the life and work of Padre Marcelo...
REFLECTION by Christiine Eber
A couple days ago I went to see Padre Marcelo, a beloved priest in highland Chiapas. I traveled about 3 1/2 hours through beautiful mountains to reach Simojovel, the parish where he is posted. I first met him in Chenalhó where he inspired my indigenous friends there by his dedication to their struggle, which is also his, because he is an indigenous man, the first indigenous priest in Chiapas. Padre Marcelo grew up in San Andrés Larrainzar working the land just like my compadres and friends in Chenalhó. A few years ago he had to be reassigned to Simojovel because of threats to his life from his activism in Chenalhó, following the massacre at Acteal and then the fight to keep the government from building a rural city there. Sadly, the threats haven’t ended as he has taken a stand against the drug dealers in Simojovel.
Padre Marcelo and I had a date for breakfast at 11 a.m. My main reason for going to see him was to put in his hands a copy of “Maya Faces in a Smoking Mirror” the film that I’ve been helping Bill Jungles produce. Since arriving in Chiapas I’ve had the privilege of delivering the film to all the participants and most of the time being able to watch it with them and hear their responses. My hopes were that I could to that after breakfast with Padre Marcelo, who speaks eloquently in the film about the harm rural cities have done to the indigenous people of Chiapas.
The feast day of San Antonio was just wrapping up when we arrived and the streets were still festooned with colored flags. I arrived with my friend Petra, who was born there and wanted to see the township again and one of her friends, a retired bilingual teacher from Huistan. We easily found the church in front of the plaza and walked up to doors leading into a large room where Padre Marcelo was standing in a baseball cap and black t-shirt speaking in Tsotsil before a large gathering of mostly indigenous men and a few mestizo men and women, representatives of the town and state government. It soon became clear to us that they were having an important meeting and that it wasn’t ending any time soon. We sat down to learn what was happening and found that this was a meeting about providing water from one or two springs in the mountains to the entire township of about 50 ejidos and barrios. People were thanking Padre Marcelo right and left because he had started the campaign to bring water to everyone in the township. The governor finally came through and the engineers were there to begin their studies of the springs tomorrow. At the meeting representatives of the communities were assembled to talk about how they wanted the process to go. This was another day of seeing in action the liberation theology practice — “see, analyze, and act.”
Petra and her friend soon tired of listening to the talk, although they both speak Tsotsil. They left to walk around town and I stayed to listen. After about an hour and a half Padre Marcelo announced that they would break into groups to analyze what they had heard and decide how to proceed from there. I figured this was my chance to speak to him. He had already asked me to stand up and introduced me as an “hermana" from the US who knew him from Chenalhó and hadn’t forgotten him. (How could I!) And I had already taken out of my bag the dvd and a gift for him and had come to terms with the fact that I wouldn’t be talking with him that day, much less watch the dvd with him.
When I reached Padre Marcelo he gave me a big hug, graciously accepted the dvd and my thanks for all he is doing for his people, and then said the words that prompted me to write this reflection. He held my hands and asked almost tenderly, “Have you eaten?” I was moved by his words because they were not what you would expect to hear from a priest, but instead from a mother or someone who cares about you. And indeed, that is what Padre Marcelo does, he cares about and for thousands of people. That means he cares that they have their most basic needs met - potable water and food to eat. He knows what it is to be hungry and go without water. He knows the value of corn and caring for mother earth so she can continue to produce food for her children.
Padre Marcelo asked a young man to take me to the kitchen. When I got there I realized that the cook would have to prepare a special breakfast for me, that, combined with the irony of having to eat alone when that is so strange here, I declined the offer and went to join my friends in the plaza where they were eating chalupas.
I only had one minute
with Padre Marcelo, but his words moved me deeply and made me think
about all the different kinds of fathers there are who sacrifice for
their children and their communities.
---by Christine Eber, ce...@nmsu.edu