Mexico

August 22, 2025

JOINT STATEMENT CONCERNING THE REDUCTION OF CIVIC SPACE IN CHIAPAS, MEXICO, DUE TO THE DETERIORATION OF CONDITIONS FOR THE DEFENCE OF HUMAN RIGHTS

We, the undersigned organisations, express our deep concern for the shrinking civic space in Chiapas, Mexico, due to the deteriorating conditions for the defence of human rights. We urgently call on the Mexican State to fulfil its obligation to protect and publicly support human rights defenders and their work, and to carry out thorough investigations […]

August 21, 2025

Open letter: The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention confirms the unjustly accusation and arbitrary detention of the Tzeltal human rights defenders Manuel Santiz Cruz, Agustín Pérez Domínguez, Juan Velasco Aguilar, Martín Pérez Domínguez, Augustín Pérez Velasco and Agustín Pérez Velasco

Dear Sirs and Madams, We are writing to express our concern for the five unjustly detained Tzeltal human rights defenders Manuel Santiz Cruz, Agustín Pérez Domínguez, Juan Velasco Aguilar, Martín Pérez Domínguez and Agustín Pérez Velasco, who were arbitrarily detained in 2022 and who have since been imprisoned in the prison el Centro Estatal de […]

August 21, 2025

URGENT APPEAL – Forced entry into the home of Ms Dora Roblero, Director of CDH Frayba

The Swedish Fellowship of Reconciliation (SweFOR) would like to express our profound concern and condemnation of the forced entry into the home of Dora Roblero, director of the Fray Bartolomé de Las Casas Human Rights Centre (CDH Frayba), which took place on the 22nd of July 2025 in San Cristóbal de Las Casas, Chiapas. The […]

July 20, 2022

Joint declaration of international CSOs expressing concern about the criminalization of Father Marcelo

10 international CSOs release a joint declaration to express concern about the situation of human rights defender Father Marcelo Pérez Pérez, parish priest of the Diocese of San Cristóbal de Las Casas.

Criminalisation against Father Marcelo Perez Perez, Parish Priest of the Diocese of San Cristobal de Las Casas The undersigned organisations express their deep concern at the attempted criminalisation of Father Marcelo Pérez Pérez, parish priest of the Diocese of San Cristóbal de Las Casas, human rights […]

July 8, 2022

We manifest our concerns about Father Marcelo Pérez Pérez

Pronouncement. Father Marcelo has been working for more than 20 years in Chiapas in peace building processes. Along with other 26 national and international Civil Society Organizations, we express our concern about this human rights defender, who, due to this work, has been criminalized and his safety is compromised for a felony he did not commit.

Read the full pronouncement We manifest our concerns about the risks of detainment, disappearance, or assassination. Hereby, the undersigned national and international civil society organizations, condemn the request for an arrest warrant against the human rights defender Marcelo Pérez Pérez. Requested by the State Attorney General’s Office on June 21st, 2022, to the Control Court […]

June 10, 2022

Militarization and rights of indigenous peoples in Chiapas

The militarization of indigenous territories is one of the main driving factors in conflicts, and often leads to the displacement of indigenous people or to situations very close to a state of war that endanger people’s lives, according to The United Nations Working Group about Indigenous People. This development can be observed in Chiapas, Mexico.

“They don´t consider our rights as indigenous people, they don´t ask if we want the National Guard. The municipal, state and federal governments made the decision to place the National Guard in our municipality.” Member of the Community Government of Chilón The municipality of Chilón in the state of Chiapas, Mexico, is populated by almost […]

February 24, 2022

Yonny Ronay, a student sentenced to 32 years in prison for a crime he did not commit

According to the lawyers of the Human Rights Center Fray Bartolomé de las Casas (Frayba), the trial against Yonny presents a series of irregularities, such as forgery of signatures, attribution of crimes unrelated to the accused and fabrication of testimonies by the prosecutor’s office in Chiapas, Mexico. Frayba confirms that Yonny’s case is just one […]

November 22, 2021

Joint statement for the recent disinformation, defamation and criminalization campaign against the International Accompaniment Project in Guatemala (ACOGUATE)

November 3, 2021 Joint statement The Network of International Accompaniment Organizations in Latin America and allied organizations express concern about the recent disinformation, defamation and criminalization against the International Accompaniment Project in Guatemala (ACOGUATE). The Peace Brigades International (PBI) organizations; Fray Bartolomé de las Casas Human Rights Center (Frayba); Christian Teams of Action for […]

September 1, 2021

Forced Internal Displacement in Chiapas

Forced Internal Displacement (FID) is a multiple and continuous violation of human rights, especially related to a resurgence of socio-political violence and situations of serious armed conflict in Chiapas, which brings with it challenges for human rights defenders.

Forced internal displacement (FID), as a continuous and multiple violation of human rights, consists of the displacement of people or groups of people who have been forced or obligated to escape or flee from their home or their usual place of residence, particularly as a result of or to avoid the effects of an armed […]

August 5, 2021

Joint Statement – Concern for Father Marcelo’s safety Parish priest at the municipality of Simojovel and human rights defender

The Human Rights Center Fray Bartolomé de las Casas (Frayba) and the Swedish Fellowship of Reconciliation (SweFOR) demonstrate concern for the human rights defender Father Marcelo Pérez Pérez due to acts of criminalization.

Joint Statement Concern for the safety of Father Marcelo, Parish priest at the municipality of Simojovel and human rights defender, Chiapas, Mexico Father Marcelo is an acknowledged human rights defender that, in his role as parish at the municipality of Simojovel and Social Work Coordinator at the diocese of San Cristóbal de las Casas, has […]