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MEXICO CITY — A Roman Catholic priest who was a leading voice for peace and conciliation in Mexico’s strife-torn southern Chiapas state was assassinated Sunday after celebrating Mass, authorities said, sparking a wave of denunciations throughout the country.
Two assailants on a motorcycle fired at Father Marcelo Pérez, 41, who was found dead inside a vehicle in the city of San Cristóbal de las Casas, according to prosecutors in Chiapas.
The priest had received multiple threats on his life as he advocated for peace in Mexico’s poorest state, which borders Guatemala and is a major transit point for U.S.-bound illegal drugs and migrants, as well as arms destined for Mexican gangs.
Mexico’s two largest criminal syndicates — the Sinaloa and the Jalisco New Generation cartels — are at war for smuggling routes in Chiapas, authorities say, often buying the allegiance of smaller criminal bands that operate throughout the state.
The ongoing conflict has forced thousands to flee for their lives, including more than 500 villagers who fled Chiapas into Guatemala in July. Some villages and towns in Chiapas have been left almost deserted.
“Chiapas is a time bomb,†Pérez told Mexico’s Aristegui Noticias in September, when he was among thousands who took part in a Pilgrimage for Peace in Tuxtla Gutiérrez, the state capital. “There are many disappeared, many kidnappings, many murders because of the presence of organized crime. ... Against this wave of violence, we seek peace.â€
An escalating turf war engulfing much of Mexico’s heavily Indigenous Chiapas state has displaced thousands as gangs battle for drug- and gun-trafficking routes.
Human rights activists condemned the priest’s killing and called on officials to identify and arrest the assassins and whoever ordered the murder. Religious leaders and others also demanded that the government take action to stem the violence in Chiapas, where well-armed gangs far outnumber police and soldiers tasked with enforcing the law.
“We reject any effort to minimize this deed as an isolated case and we make an urgent call to authorities for the restoration of order in Chiapas,†the Jesuit Order in Mexico said in a statement. “Organized crime has caused fear and pain in diverse parts of the country, and Chiapas is not an exception. The violence in this region reflects a structural problem that demands an integral and urgent response from the state.â€
Pérez was a native of Chiapas and, like much of the state’s population, was of Indigenous Mayan roots, a member of the Tzotzil-speaking culture. He had long intervened in struggles affecting the Indigenous poor in the state. Church officials transferred Pérez to San Cristóbal de las Casas, the historic colonial city at the heart of the Indigenous highlands, after he received death threats at postings in rural parishes where he had previously been assigned.
“For decades, Father Marcelo has been a symbol of resistance and support in Chiapas, defending the dignity, the rights of the people, and the construction of an authentic peace,†the Jesuit Order said.
Authorities vowed to track down Pérez’s killers, though officials did not immediately name any suspects.
“There will not be impunity,†declared Rosa Icela RodrÃguez Velázquez, Mexico’s chief of security, in a statement on X. “Our solidarity [is] with the Catholic community.â€
Tamping down Mexico’s violence is a major challenge for President Claudia Sheinbaum, who took office Oct. 1. Her predecessor and mentor, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, downplayed the problem of violence in Chiapas, saying that reports of rising crime in the southern state were exaggerated.
Special correspondent Cecilia Sánchez Vidal contributed to this report.
