— Anonymous Contributor, first published with It’s Going Down

Communique From, Karla Guadalupe Meza Méndez, Partner Of Indigenous Prisoner In Struggle, Marcelino Ruiz Gómez, Expressing Her Concern For The Measures Being Taken By Prison Authorities In Chiapas During The COVID-19 Pandemic.

April 9, 2020

Comitán, Chiapas, Mexico

To the Zapatista Army of National Liberation

To the National Indigenous Congress

To the Indigenous Governing Council

To the National and International Civil Society

To the Media

To the Believers

To the People of Mexico and the World

Compañerxs, I send you a fraternal embrace.

I am the wife of Marcelino Ruiz Gómez, Indigenous prisoner in struggle of the organization, Vineketik en Resistencia. Marcelino is currently imprisoned in Comitán, Chiapas, prison number 10. I want to express my concern at this moment of crisis, brought about by the global pandemic. The government has taken precautionary measures in all of the prisons of the state, suspending all visits. The problem is that Marcelino and the majority of the prisoners survive from their work, like making handcrafts. With their work, they are able to cover their necessities, such as hygiene products, since the state does not cover those basic necessities. The state is only in charge of locking up Indigenous people. The prisoners have to cover their basic necessities. Now that they cannot work, we, the families, are very concerned. We are concerned because they do not receive decent food and the health services don’t have proper medication. And, it seems that the prisoners are vulnerable to this illness.

Knowing that the prisoners can’t work, rather than providing support, the prison authorities have responded by raising the prices in the commissary store. It is common that when a family can take the little supplies that they can to the prison, the prison authorities refuse to receive it, or don’t deliver it to our family members. This is a violation of their human rights. For this, I call on everyone to not forget political prisoners and prisoners in struggle at this moment.

On the other hand, we, the families of the Indigenous prisoners in struggle, we express our solidarity with the prisoners of the revolt in Chile, with prisoners in struggle in Spain, Palestine and Turkey. We know they are going through anxious moments. And we know this is the work of the capitalist governments.

Freedom for all the political prisoners and prisoners in struggle!

Sincerely,

Karla Guadalupe Meza Méndez

• 

•