Two Protestants were released from prison on 10 July and local authorities promised to respect religious freedom after state authorities intervened in their case.
Andres Lopez and Virginia Lopez, both from the village of Tseteltón, had been imprisoned in the municipal capital of San Juan Chamula, Chiapas State, since 7 July because of their conversion to Protestantism.
Luis Herrera, of the Co-ordination of Christian Organisations and Voice of the Martyrs– Mexico, said that, as part of the agreement, the two victims will not have to pay a fine.
Village leaders, in the agreement negotiated by state government religious affairs officials and municipal leaders, agreed to allow the Protestants, who belong to the Jesus is the Way Church, to practise their faith in freedom. However, while the village leaders agreed not to cut water and electricity supplies to the homes of the Protestants, they continued to maintain that the children of the Protestants should not attend the local school. The Protestant minority agreed to send their children to another school as a gesture of goodwill.
Herrera said: ‘Many of these cases could be resolved even more rapidly than this case in Tseteltón, if there was a dialogue. This issue has not been a priority for the authorities and they have not acted with courage. In this case, three minors were involved; [they] were detained alongside the adults and were locked up, although they were released a little while later… this is an abuse of authority. There is still a lot to do in Chiapas.’
