In a June 15th communiqué the authorities from the Autonomous Municipality of San Juan Copola in the lower Triqui region in the state of Oaxaca denounced an attack by paramilitaries that left a 13-year-old boy dead and his 16 year-old sister gravely injured. The attack occurred June 13th in the afternoon when “paramilitary groups” opened fire using high-caliber guns in the center of the municipality. The attack lasted two hours.

This is the first attack the autonomous municipality has experienced since the communities in the Triqui region decided to create the municipality three years ago. Authorities in the autonomous municipality suspect that this attack “was supported” by the state and municipal government. In their communiqué the authorities signaled that for days before the attack there had been intents to “provoke and divide the region because the people living in the municipality did not allow voting booths to be installed in their territory.” The communiqué further explained that at the time of the attack, some of the members of the municipality were accompanying “the family members of the ‘Loxicha brothers’ in their march to Mexico City.” The communal police is currently searching for those responsible for the attack in order to bring them to justice.

For more information, please visit:
Atacan alcaldía en Oaxaca; un muerto, La Jornada (16/06/2009)

Comunicado del Municipio Autónomo  de San Juan Copala, CENCOS (16/06/2009)