Mexico's Supreme Court Aug. 12 overturned the sentences of 22 men who were imprisoned in the 1997 massacre of 45 indigenous peasants at Acteal [2] in southern Chiapas state. In a 4-1 vote, the court found that irregularities were committed by prosecutors who handled the case. The cases of 35 more convicted in the massacre are under review. Victor Hugo López of the Fray Bartolome de las Casas Human Rights Center agreed the case should be reopened, but urged a wider probe: "We also agree that some procedures were violated as these people were investigated. But we think there is more to it. We do not think that the Acteal massacre resulted from a conflict between rivaling communities. We think the Mexican state is responsible for this crime." (FSRN [3], NYT [4], Aug. 12)
See our last posts on Mexico [5] and the struggle in Chiapas [6].
