Written by Lucio for Borderland Beat
Catholic Priests, are among the bravest drug war heroes of Mexico, and they
are being killed at an escalating and appalling rate. Few are reporting the full story, or
are reporting the numbers inaccurately, including the Catholic Church.
The fact that Mexico is
one of the most dangerous places on earth for reporters is well known, what is
far less written about is the violence perpetrated against Catholic Priests.
Mexico is officially now the most
dangerous place on earth for Catholic Priests. While long in the top group of most dangerous
places for priests, Mexico is now its leader.
For the sixth consecutive year, Mexico tops the list in murders and disappearances of Catholic priests in
Latin America.
What must be
established, murders and kidnappings of priests receive little attention
outside regional reporting hubs. It is a
perplexing, how a story of dozens of priests
being murdered by cartels during 2 administrations goes unrecognized, or for example, a story about 5 priests being killed in November–December of 2013 in Tamaulipas and
Veracruz, is but a tiny blip on the media radar.
Inaccuracy
of numbers
It must be pointed out,
that priests are kidnapped, often from churches or rectories, but the "disappearance" never budges
from being labeled as such, to being counted as “killed” or
"dead", unless there is a body. Those kidnapped and not found, are not recorded on a drug war casualty list.
In fairness, neither is any other group of people, which renders summations weak and without merit.
Nonetheless, the point being, as the title of this post says; ' "dozens" of priests killed during the Calderon-Peña Administrations', astonishing in of itself, still is an accurate tally.
Then there is
misreporting, much like municipalities are known to ascribe to, in attempting to
lower the rate of violence.
For example, with four
days remaining in 2012, in the state of Michoacán,
padre Santiago Álvarez Figueroa, vanished.
Although he had received dozens of death threats leading up to his disappearance,
Authorities were quick to discount he had fallen prey to organized crime,
instead this story was offered, “we think he was in an automobile accident”, this was
reported by Jesus Reyes Garcia of the governor’s office, who later revised the
version when the vehicle of the priest was not found and parishioners rejected the account.
What is known, Father Santiago, 27, had
just finished celebrating Mass in the tiny town of Jacona, he entered his car
and headed home to his hometown of Paredones. He called one of the
nuns, advising he was on his way back home.
He never arrived.
Reyes is now
incarcerated for collusion with organized crime, he was temporary governor while
Governor Fausto Vallejo Figueroa was in the U.S. getting a
new liver. Vallejo Figueroa resigned on
the heels of the controversy of his son’s arrest. His son known as ‘El Gerber’, was arrested after
a Tutateca video of him with the Caballeros Templarios leader surfaced.
Santiago’s body was never found. He is not listed as murdered, he is
with the other priests in perpetual limbo on the “disappeared” list. His Bakersfield, California, family, has no
doubt he was murdered by organized crime, most likely the culprits are Caballeros Templarios.
Torture,
including rape prior to murder
Organized
crime killings of priests are particularly brutal.
The recovered bodies of
priests depict odious, barbaric torture and killing.
Decapitation, dismemberment, incineration, strangulation, drowning, torture
and rape are the methods used against priests in additional to the “conventional”
killing methods of gunshot, or stabbings.
Take the case of Padre John Ssenyondo of Chilapa, Guerrero. The Ugandan priest loved his adopted country
of Mexico, and wanted better for its people.
He had lived in Guerrero for 5 years, preaching to the most impoverished
if Mexican populous. And by all accounts
his parishioners loved the outgoing priest with the quick wide smile.
But they also worried
about his safety. For his sermons had
become strong and firm against organized crime.
Many think that was his downfall.
In April of 2014, Padre
John disappeared while traveling back from conducting mass (service) in the mountains of
Guerrero. His disappearance went almost
without notice, if not for the discovery of a mass grave.
The Catholic Church was
quiet about the case, the regional rector of the cathedral, Javier
Casarrubias Carballido, never commented on the missing Priest.
Parishioners spoke among
themselves, a persistent rumor was that a cartel leader asked the priest to baptize
his child, and the request was denied. That scenario seems unlikely, since in the Catholic religion, the sins of the father would be
deemed irrelevant to the child.
The other scenario is
the more likely of the two, the priest would not heed to warnings to halt sermons against organized crime. He
had begun drawing the link of local officials and organized crime.
A mass grave was
discovered in the outskirts of Chilapa, Chilapa is about 30 miles east of
Chilpancingo,
the state capital.
The remains of Padre
John were among the 13 bodies buried in a mass narco fosa. The bodies were
decapitated and dismembered, and incomplete.
Padre John’s skull and various other bones were discovered, he was
identified by dental records.
Why
are priest targeted?
Long held rumors of
priests ingratiating themselves towards organized crime groups for financial gain, benefiting their parishes, is persistent,
but inaccurate. That would be the
exception not the norm. Organized crime
regards priests as the enemy. The following lists a few of the reasons why.
Sermons:
outspoken priests, who preaching against organized crime, and the collusion of
government officials and police.
Organized crime groups prefer to remain under the radar, and feel
threatened by those who may encourage an organized backlash against their
activities. Same can be said about municipal
governments and police.
Assisting
Economic Migrants: Migrants,
mostly from Central America, are highly exploited by cartels, and are at the
core of narco occupational diversification.
For example the sex trade, kidnapping, extortion, human trafficking, and
forcible recruitment into cartel work including becoming sicarios (hitmen). Those who shelter migrants and advocate for migrant issues, interrupt business, resulting in bottom line impact. Catholic clergy are the operators of 95% of migrant shelters. They are also their greatest advocacy group, in and out of Mexico.
Who can ever forget the
images of 72 migrants slaughtered in Tamaulipas in 2010? 72 human beings,
executed for the crime of refusing recruitment into the Los Zetas cartel.
Throughout Mexico
Catholic Priests create a safe haven for migrants. Priests provide migrants shelter, assistance,
medical care and other forms of care.
Cartels consider this an intrusion into their source of revenue. Priests who run the migrant shelters such as
Casa Migrante’s are constantly being threatened.
Catholic
based Rehab Centers: Alcohol and drug rehab centers have
become fewer in number than two years ago.
There were a string of attacks by cartels, resulting in the destruction
of centers or mass killings of inhabitants. 19 killed in a Chihuahua rehab in photo at left.
Cartels exploit the centers,
extorting and forcibly recruit sicarios and drug traffickers, often death
threats are realized when a rehab group resists. Others are killed for failing
to pay for drugs or betraying a dealer
Supporting Autodefensa
Movements: Autodefensa
groups are organized as a union consisting of 13 states. Some priests are targeted because of their support of these
groups, or direct involvement.
Refusing
requests: In
the narco world, it is notable that there are large groups of
Santería followers. Although the religious based cult is syncretized with
Catholicism and Mesoamerican, it is strictly condemned by the religion. Small “Santeria Chapels” are erected that
seem to pop up overnight, that “honor” the Santeria offshoot Nuestra Señora de
la Santa Muerte.
While there are
millions of good people, often the marginalized people of society, which
practice the “religion”, with no intention to harm others. It is organized crime that have taken it to a
sinister level, thinking that Santa Muerte will protect them from harm or
imprisonment while they conduct criminality, including murder.
This Santa Muerte chapel was bulldozed in Allende
This Acuña chapel was destroyed in 2013
In 2013, Tamaulipas and
Veracruz priests began receiving demands that Catholic altars in churches
feature statues of Santa Muerte. Going
further that masses be said in honor of Santa Muerte. Parishioners say It is because of the refusals
that some priests disappeared.
