December 21 and 22 will mark the 30th anniversary of the founding of the civil organization Las Abejas and 25 years since the massacre in Acteal. For this reason it is worthwhile to remember a bit about both events, and to highlight the tireless and peaceful struggle they have led for the vindication and respect of indigenous rights.
As the 25th anniversary of the Acteal Massacre approaches, we share this article with you as an basic introduction to Las Abejas de Acteal, their origins and the events surrounding the massacre on December 22nd, 1997.
Not all of Las Abejas were in agreement with the agreement made with the AMLO government, which is mentioned in the article. For this reason, Frayba continues to send civil observers to Acteal. As part of Schools for Chiapas ongoing collaboration with Frayba, we are recruiting volunteers. If you would like to find out more about the work of the BriCos, or perhaps even come as a volunteer for two weeks in Acteal, please visit our website here: https://schoolsforchiapas.org/become-a-human-rights-observer/
The path of Father Marcelo, of the Diocese of San Cristóbal, was born of the pain of the Acteal massacre in 1997. Since his conversion, his path has led him in his accompaniment of peasant people, “to weep with those who weep, to suffer with those who suffer” and, above all, “to walk with them.”
“Curiously, the directors of a research center par excellence were not informed that the review of the files of the Acteal massacre prisoners that they promoted, of enormous ethical, legal and political relevance, were part of an agreement between the President of the Republic and the professor of the CIDE that brought the case to them. Nor did it seem to matter to them that in reality they were advocating impunity and for the country’s jails to be full of indigenous people, those who in fact are unjustly imprisoned.”
Luis Hernandez Navarro writes, “Curiously, in a country in which the prisons are full of innocent indigenous people, victims of power, the educational institution was involved in the defense of paramilitaries of Acteal that killed off the members of Las Abejas.”
