Early in the morning on 27 January, nine defenders of the territory of Santa María Mixtequilla were arbitrarily detained and charged with the theft of a local police car in the context of protests organised by the community against the imposition of a “Development Zone” as part of the Interoceanic Corridor megaproject. The following day, many State police agents, members of the Navy and the National Guard were reportedly present, which community members see as an act of intimidation aimed at stopping their mobilisation.
These recent acts of intimidation and criminalisation add to a worrisome and unacceptable scenario of attacks against land, territory and human rights defenders and communities in the region documented by the Civilian Observation Mission
In light of the severity of the attacks, the national and international organisations who participated in the Observation Mission urgently call on the competent federal, state and municipal authorities to immediately release the nine indigenous Zapoteco defenders of Santa María Mixtequilla.
