APPEAL -11/12/2009
On 27 November 2009, at approximately 7.45pm, Mr Mariano Abarca Roblero was assassinated in Chicomuselo, the seat of municipal government in Chiapas. Mariano Abarca Roblero was a member of the human rights organisation Dos Valles Valientes (“Two Brave Valleys”), a movement opposed to mining operations, and was a follower of la Red Mexicana de Afectados por la Mineríá (REMA - the Mexican Network of those Affected by Mining).
Further Information
According to reports, Mariano Abarca Roblero was sitting in his van outside his home, speaking with Mr Orlando Velásquez, who was standing outside the van, when a man on a motorcycle approached and fired shots at him. Mariano Abarca Roblero received three bullet wounds to the neck and chest and died instantly. Orlando Velásquez also received a gunshot wound. After firing the shots, the man on the motorcycle continued on to the corner of the street, where he met with another man. The two individuals then left on the motorcycle, travelling in an unknown direction.
Mariano Abarca Roblero was a human rights defender who opposed mining operations in the municipality of Chicomuselo, where the Canadian company Blackfire Exploration Ltd has been extracting barium oxide for the past year. Just days prior to his killing Mariano Abarca Roblero had filed a complaint against two staff members of Blackfire Exploration Ltd in relation to death threats that had been made. Despite this complaint he did not receive any precautionary security measures from the authorities.
In July 2009, Mariano Abarca Roblero participated in a protest outside the Canadian Embassy in Mexico City which demanded the withdrawal of the mining companies from the region. During the month of July, he and other inhabitants of the municipality had carried out a road block in Chicomuselo to prevent the passage of the mining company’s machinery and trucks. As a result, Mariano Abarca Roblero was arrested and charged on 17 August, accused of breaching the peace, criminal association, attacks on the means of communication, damages and prejudice against Blackfire Exploration Ltd.Mariano Abarca Roblero was released from custody on 26 August 2009 for lack of sufficient evidence to pursue a judicial process.
After his release he immediately joined a protest organised by the inhabitants of Chicomuselo to demand the withdrawal of the mining companies. He was an active participant in the II Encuentro Chiapaneco (Second Chiapas Meeting) of REMA which took place from 29-30 August 2009 in Chicomuselo.
Mariano Abarca Roblero’s assassination forms part of an ongoing campaign of intimidation against anti-mining organisations in Chiapas. Staff at organisations including el Comité de Derechos Humanos Oralia Morales (the Oralia Morales Human Rights Committee) in Frontera Comalapa, and el Comité de Derechos Humanos 10 de Enero (the 10 of January Human Rights Committee) in Chicomuselo have been receiving death threats since July, which are reportedly being sent by employees of Blackfire Exploration Ltd.
Front Line believes that the killing of Mariano Abarca Roblero was directly related to his work in the defence of human rights, in particular environmental and land rights. Front Line sees this as part of a pattern of ongoing harassment of human rights defenders in Chiapas, and is seriously concerned for the physical and psychological integrity of the colleagues of Mariano Abarca Roblero, and of all human rights defenders in the region.
Front Line urges the Mexican authorities to:
1. Carry out an immediate, impartial and thorough investigation into the killing of Mariano Abarca Roblero, with a view to publishing the results and bringing those responsible to justice in accordance with international standards;
2. Guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of human rights defenders in Chiapas, particularly by ensuring that adequate and effective security measures are provided to protect human rights defenders at risk;
3.Ensure that all human rights defenders in Chiapas, carrying out their legitimate work in the defence of human rights, are able to operate free of restrictions and reprisals.
