To All Living Things
Last Week's Column

Amnesty Action:
Apparent Extrajudicial Executions
and Fear for Safety in Mexico
Kathy Gay

his week’s action from Amnesty International concerns four members of a family in Mexico who were executed in their home in the state of Oaxaca approximately two weeks ago. They were shot dead at point-blank range with a machine gun and a shotgun by two people allegedly linked to local authorities. Three young members of the family -- children aged 4, 6 and 8 -- witnessed the brutal murders of their mother, father, brother and grandmother.

All four victims were either members or supporters of the Partido de la Revolucion Democratica (PRD), Party of the Democratic Revolution, a legal opposition party in Mexico. The family was known in the area for its political activism in the PRD and had been threatened and harassed on previous occasions by members of the judicial police. According to reports, these four deaths bring to 19 the total number of PRD activists murdered in Oaxaca for political reasons since January 1997.

Amnesty International is deeply alarmed that these four individuals appear to have been extrajudicially executed. The organization also fears for the safety of the three young children of the family who were present as the killings were carried out.

Background Information

Amnesty International has documented dozens of cases of serious human rights violations against members of the PRD, peasant and community activists, as well as human rights defenders in states such as Guerrero and Oaxaca. The upcoming mid-term congressional elections scheduled for July seem to have intensified political tension in many areas of the country, particularly in states such as Oaxaca that have a record of human rights violations and impunity from prosecution for the perpetrators.

How you can help

Please send a letter to Mexico’s Minister of the Interior as soon as possible, but no later than July 27, 1997. You may use the sample letter linked below or use it as a model to write your own letter. If you choose to use the sample letter, please cut off or delete all website information at the very top of the letter. If you choose to write your own letter, make sure that it is politely worded and non-partisan (i.e., not used as a vehicle for political expression). Care must be taken to ensure that nothing is written that will cause harm to the three surviving children in this family or to other political activists in Mexico. Be sure to include both your name and address, as well as the date, on your letter.

U.S. airmail postage to Mexico is 40 cents.

Questions?

If you have any questions, just post a message to me (Kathy Gay) on the Pub, and I will respond as soon as I can. I greatly appreciate your interest and support.

To see the sample letter for this action, click here.

__________________________________________________

Kathy Gay is a vegan, and has been a member of Amnesty International for nearly 10 years, where she has worked on numerous campaigns. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area and is a business analyst for a leading California bank.

Kathy's column, To All Living Things, is a regular feature of VegSource On-Line Magazine.