From the Editors

A group of around 50 armed men, uniformed and masked, who call themselves the self-defense forces of San Cristóbal de las Casas municipality, published a video on social networks in which they make their existence public knowledge.

In the video, which they titled: We are not some cartel. We are self-defense forces of San Cristóbal and its surrounding area [1]. One of them appears reading a message directed to all those who want to enter San Cristóbal to destroy the peace and want to form some “place” (plaza).

We tell them that San Cristóbal, Chamula and Betania (a community located in the neighbor municipality of Teopisca) are free, autonomous, and we do not want any cartel, we are nothing like that.

With a distorted voice, he continued: “We already have had enough of the fucking Motonetos (Scooters). We are watching now. That is why we will take care of and watch over the peace, and any scourge that wants to make his mess like Alejandro, alias El Chicle, and (…) that we now know are supported by the director of the municipal police of San Cristóbal, Romeo. They touch one of us and they touch us all. They are warned, we are not going to leave.”

The message was released four days after a television station broadcast a story showing the sale of all kinds of drugs in broad daylight in the markets of San Cristobal de las Casas.

[1] We know nothing more about this group than what is in this article. A similar article appeared in El Heraldo de Chiapas on April 7. We wonder who is financing this group, which appears well-equipped with bulletproof vests, uniforms and high-powered rifles.

Originally published in Spanish by La Jornada, Saturday, April 8, 2023, https://www.jornada.com.mx/2023/04/08/estados/022n2est and Re-published with English interpretation by the Chiapas Support Committee