Indigenous Condemn Police Killing of Leader in Oaxaca

Indigenous people from the Union of Indigenous Communities of the Northern Zone of the Isthmus (UCIZONI) and residents of Matías Romero, Oaxaca, bid farewell to leader BenjamínJuárez José with red and black crosses after he died due to injuries caused by police during his arrest and detention in the municipal jail.

Juárez José, who served as acting president of the UCIZONI Board of Directors, was arrested on Wednesday afternoon “with extreme violence” by municipal police, the indigenous group reported. “He was taken to the police vehicle, thrown into the truck bed, and brought handcuffed to the municipal jail, where he died.”

In protest, members of UCIZONI arrived at the city hall to spray paint messages such as, “Killer cops, Cabello,the mayor, out.” UCIZONI adviser Carlos Beas Torres explained that Juárez José’s death was caused by police due to the excessive violence used against him.

UCIZONI said the Matías Romero local government tried to cover up the incident by transferring the indigenous leader to the IMSS-Prospera Hospital, which reported that he had died hours before arriving there. “Right now they are conducting the autopsy, however, one can plainly see bruises on the head and a wound on the front of our compañero,” UCIZONI said on Thursday.

“We demand that Governor Alejandro Murat investigate these acts of violence, that those responsible be punished, and we demand the immediate removal of the Matías Romero police authorities,” they said.

As part of the protest, an encampment was put in place on the morning of April 6 in front of the offices of the Public Prosecutor. Hundreds of members from UCIZONI, civic, and neighborhood organizations participated. Meanwhile, the municipal police blocked all access to city hall.

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