HR in the News: Human Rights Activists Attacked in Mexico

On Tuesday April 27th, a caravan of human rights observers was ambushed in Southern Mexico near the city of Oaxaca. A group of militants forced the vehicles off the road, after which they riddled them with bullets. The vehicles displayed banners alerting the attackers that international observers and members of the press were onboard. Two of the passengers in the caravan were killed. One of them, a Finnish man named Jyri Jaakkola, had planned to stay in Mexico for the next year advocating for the human rights of citizens in places like Oaxaca, which is one of the poorest cities in Mexico and has a history of violence. The second victim was a Mexican woman named Beatriz Carino, who directed the Mexican human rights group CACTUS. In addition to the two deaths, two other Mexican members of the caravan, reporter Erika Ramirez and photographer David Cilia, are currently missing. The group’s main mission was to document and observe the conditions under which indigenous peoples lived in the city, which included lack of adequate food, electricity and education. Some members of the convoy took part in a five month takeover of the Oaxaca government by a leftist organization back in 2006. The human rights activists have declared their intentions to continue their mission, despite the dangers and the fact that two members of their party--at least one of which is injured--have yet to be found.