.bmp)
.bmp)
On Monday (July 23),Judge Martin Rangel Cervantes added one year to the sentences of the 17 men in Acteal Case 223/97 and ordered a fine of 3,000,000 pesos ($276,000) in damages to be paid to the victims’ families.The sentences have been increased to 26 years from 25.Open Doors is currently working with the Center for Economic Research and Education (CIDE),which has conducted a study of the 60,000 pages in the Acteal defense file.CIDE attorneys have determined that there is clear evidence of the innocence of most of the accused.Eight attorneys have volunteered to explore different venues to advance the defense efforts.Open Doors Latin America will also be working together with the Open Doors International advocacy to explore international options in the defense process.Background:
On December 22, 1997,a tragedy occurred in the municipality of Chenalho,Chiapas,Mexico. Ideological and political differences which had festered for over a year led to an armed confrontation resulting in the sad and senseless killing of 45 indigenous Tzotzil Indians,37 of whom were women and children.The manhunt for the participants in the Acteal confrontation resulted in the arrest and imprisonment of 90 people,of which 83 were unjustly imprisoned, including 35 evangelical believers from the churches in the Chenalho community.A total of 79 prisoners,including the evangelical believers,are still in prison for allegedly participating in the murders.An Open Doors contact says that about 60 percent of the prisoners in the Acteal case are Christian.The imprisoned men were tried in three groups(cases).The 23 men in case 224/97 are serving 36-year sentences.There were 19 men in the second group(case 223/97),but today there are 17,as one died of cancer in jail(Gregorio Vásquez Lopez)and another person was released because of his good behavior and because he was a minor.The 39 men in the third group,case 46/98,were given 25-year sentences.
http://www.opendoorsusa.org/
As in the days of Noah...
