Mexico is shocked by the news that a priest who was in a church for several years is shot dead after leaving the services for the church. He was known for his activism in defense of indigenous and labor rights in Mexico.
He was a catholic priest named Marcelo Perez who was returning home from church while he was in his vehicle; two men came on his side of his bike and shot him with two bullets. It happened in the southern state of Chiapas.
father Marcelo has played a great role in society as he was the symbol of resistance and has stood alongside the communities of Chiapas for decades, defending the dignity and rights of the people and working toward true peace,’’ the Jesuits, Perez’s religious order, said in a statement.
The killing occurs during a surge of violence in the southern state, which saw approximately 500 murders between January and August this year.
Among the rights of indigenous people and farmworkers, the Jesuits said Perez was also a vocal critic of organized criminal groups.
this region is not only suffering from murders but is also forced recruitment into criminal groups, kidnappings, threat and ransacking of its natural resources,’’ religious order stated that,’’
Several cases have been reported already which include, Mexican human rights activists and environmental defenders who have long condemned violent harassment and intimidation by criminal groups and state security forces.
Perez was not just a normal person he was a member of the Tzotzil indigenous people and had served the community in Chiapas for two decades, developing a reputation as someone who could help settle disputes, especially over land.
The death of Perez will not go wasted because ‘’ we will collaborate with all the authorities so his death does not go unpunished and those guilty face the courts,’’ Chiapas governor Rutilio Escandon said in his social media post, calling this assassination a cowardly act.
In Mexico, accountability for murder is rare, with roughly 95 percent of homicides remaining unsolved. Rights activists and Indigenous land defenders face significant violence and intimidation. A 2023 Amnesty International report highlighted that these groups experience high levels of criminalization and persecution as part of a “broader strategy to discourage and dismantle advocacy for land, territorial, and environmental rights.
The report also noted that Mexico ranks among the countries with the highest number of murders of environmental defenders. On Sunday, the United Nations human rights office in Mexico stated that “several national and international organizations had publicly warned about the increasing threats, attacks, and criminalization” of Pérez, the priest. It added that these threats “have intensified in recent years due to his tireless efforts in advocating for justice and the rights of Indigenous peoples.