To the indigenous peoples of Mexico and the world... To the honest and supportive media outlets.. To the dignified and heroic people of Oaxaca, Liberated Land... To the men and women who are familiar with our struggle, which is your struggle, the struggle of those from below, which is created with the strength, commitment and blood of our martyrs who have given life to the rebellion that we are… To Bety and Jyri, and to his parents who have joined us from so far away and have listened...

Titled “Polluting the Public Square: Anti-Semitic Discourse in Spain,” the report released last week points to “more public expressions and greater acceptance of virulent anti-Jewish attitudes.” The report, which was presented to Spanish Foreign Minister Miguel Moratinos, focuses on recent trends in Spain, including anti-Jewish attitudes during Israel's Gaza military offensive last winter, and anti-Semitic cartoons and articles in Spain's mainstream media. In addition,...

A couple of weeks ago, while I was on vacation, my cell phone rang; it was Jorge Bolanos, the head of the Cuban Interest Section (we of course don't have diplomatic relations with Cuba) in Washington. "I have a message for you from Fidel," he said. This made me sit up straight. "He has read your Atlantic article about Iran and Israel. He invites you to Havana on Sunday to discuss the article." I am always eager, of course, to interact with readers of The Atlantic, so I...

Amnesty International has condemned the Mexican authorities’ decision to pursue charges against human rights defender Raúl Hernández for a murder he did not commit, after a state prosecutor today decided to continue the case against him. The State Attorney General’s Office of Guerrero upheld murder charges against Raúl Hernández, despite unreliable and fabricated evidence. The judge presiding over the case is expected to decide on his innocence or...

The Anti-Defamation League on Thursday expressed deep concern about recent anti-Semitic incidents in Chile targeting Jewish community leaders and institutions, and called on the country’s officials to publicly condemn such acts. In recent weeks, vandals have desecrated cemeteries and spray-painted anti-Semitic graffiti on synagogues and Jewish schools in three cities, including the capital, Santiago. In some instances, the graffiti included swastikas and the words “Juden...

Amnesty International has urged the Peruvian authorities to drop unsubstantiated charges against a prominent Indigenous leader, who was detained on his return to the country this week after almost a year in Nicaragua. Segundo Alberto Pizango Chota is accused of being responsible for violence between Indigenous rights activists and police, in which 33 people were killed and at least 200 injured in Bagua, northern Peru, in June last year. However, at the time of the violence Alberto...

Amnesty International has called on the Mexican authorities to protect an Indigenous community blockaded by more than 30 paramilitary gunmen with links to one of the country's main political parties. The 700 people living in San Juan Copala, in the Indigenous Triqui region of Oaxaca state, are virtually cut off from the outside world. They have restricted access to food and electricity and the armed group has also cut their water supply. Those trying to break the blockade have been...

Amnesty International has reiterated its call for the Mexican federal authorities to thoroughly investigate the attack on human rights observers in the southern state of Oaxaca, which left two people dead and several injured. Around 30 people in an International Caravan of Human Rights Observers were ambushed by armed men in the Indigenous Triqui area on Tuesday 27 April. Jyri Antero Jaakola an observer from Finland, and Indigenous human rights defender Alberta Cariño -also known...

Mexico's Supreme Court has overturned the kidnapping convictions and ordered the release of two Indian market vendors whose case received international attention. Otomi Indians Alberta Alcantara Juan and Teresa Gonzalez Cornelio have spent almost four years in prison on 21-year sentences for the alleged kidnapping of six federal agents. Prosecutors say the agents were confiscating pirated good at a market in 2006 when angry vendors overpowered them and held them against their will. The...

In 2002, in separate incidents, two indigenous women, Inés Fernández Ortega and Valentina Rosendo Cantú, were reportedly raped by soldiers. More than five years later, no one has been brought to justice. Both women have shown great courage in reporting their ordeals to the authorities: cultural, economic and social barriers deter many indigenous women in Mexico from seeking justice. Lorenzo Fernández Ortega, a leading member of the Me Phaa Indigenous People’s...