The state of Oaxaca ranks second nationally in the number of people registered with the federal government’s Protection Mechanism for Human Rights Defenders and Journalists. Since Governor Salomón Jara Cruz took office in December 2022, 33 activists have been murdered, according to the organization Services for Alternative Education (Educa).
Although officials from the Morena party have claimed that the figure of 33 defenders killed during his administration is incorrect, Educa presented the names of the victims last April during the Third Permanent Forum in Defense of Territory and Social Property in Oaxaca, where a tribute was held to raise awareness of their plight.
Víctor Hugo López Rodríguez, executive secretary of the National Network of Civil Human Rights Organizations, “All Rights for All” (Red TDT), stated that the situation regarding human rights defenders in Oaxaca is very worrying, as they are constantly attacked and state and federal authorities have done nothing about it.
He specified that Oaxaca is second only to Mexico City in terms of the number of people enrolled in the protection mechanism; however, the state leads in the number of defenders specifically covered, with a total of 161 beneficiaries.
He emphasized that having a higher number of people enrolled in the protection mechanism is not a good sign, as the Jara Cruz administration tries to portray it, and “what we see is that this undoubtedly reflects a climate of risk and violence in the state that has not been addressed.”
He added that the TDT Network is concerned that the Oaxaca government, “far from generating proposals for comprehensive support for human rights defenders, is seen as more of a reactive and defensive government,” when the most important thing would be to focus on finding solutions to these problems.
The advisor, who also serves on the Advisory Council of the federal mechanism, cited as an example the raid on the offices of the Gobixha Comprehensive Human Rights Defense Committee, carried out in May 2024, a case in which no one has been arrested despite having evidence about who the perpetrators were.
He also highlighted the case of the Union of Indigenous Communities of the Northern Zone of the Isthmus, whose members have been murdered, and whose leader, Carlos Beas Torres, has suffered threats and harassment this year.
For her part, Elizabeth Lara Rodríguez, head of the Oaxaca State Human Rights Ombudsman’s Office, stated that while this situation is not unique to Oaxaca, it is clear that human rights defenders are not allowed to carry out their work.
She added that it is the state’s responsibility to create conditions so that human rights defenders—civil, environmental, and all those involved in the defense of human rights—can undoubtedly exercise their rights with complete freedom.
In Oaxaca, human rights defenders work in various areas, so there is no specific region where attacks against them are concentrated.
The Protection Mechanism for Human Rights Defenders and Journalists indicates that Oaxaca has a total of 194 beneficiaries: 86 women and 108 men. Of these, 161 are human rights defenders and 33 are journalists.
In December 2022, one human rights defender was murdered; in 2023, 13 were murdered. In 2024, 13 were killed, and in 2025, six, for a total of 33 homicides of human rights defenders, according to the organization Educa.
Ana Cristina García was killed on December 20, 2022, and in 2023, the following were killed: Constantino Silvestre Luis, January 23; Leodegario Cruz de Jesús, Gabina Martínez de Jesús, and María Ramírez Martínez, February 9; Martiniano de Jesús Osorio, March 27; Félix Vicente Cruz, April 13; Hortensia Felipe Santiago, May 3; Gertrudis Cruz de Jesús, June 15; Cliserina Cruz Ramírez, June 16; Noel López Gallegos, July 4; Mario Reyes Ramírez, December 3; and Humberto Cruz Ortiz, December 19.
In 2024, Palemón Vásquez Cajero was killed on March 18; Mario Hernández Martínez, June 15; Lorenzo Santos Torres, July 18; Rafael González López, July 25; Vicente Ramírez Santiago, July 30; Daniel Bautista Vásquez, September 13; Sandra Estéfana Domínguez, October 4; Gerardo Cruz Palacios, October 7; Filiberto Santos Cruz and Victoriano Flores Ramírez, November 6; Rigoberto Martínez Sandoval and sisters Adriana and Virginia Ortiz García, November 11.
In 2025, the following murders were committed: Arnoldo Nicolás Romero, January 21; Wilfrido Atanacio Cristóbal, Victoriano Quirino, and Abraham Quirino, February 13; Cristino Castro Perea, February 28; and Cándido Santiago López, November 30.
Source: jornada
