The Mexican Peace Movement, founded by poet Javier Sicilia, has demanded justice following the murder of one of its members. Nepomuceno Moreno Nuñez was shot to death around Midday on Monday in the town of Hermosillo, Sonora.
The Mexican Peace Movement, founded by poet Javier Sicilia, has demanded justice following the murder of one of its members.
Nepomuceno Moreno Nuñez was shot to death around Midday on Monday in the town of Hermosillo, Sonora.
Moreno, who joined the Movement for Peace with Justice and Dignity in May and had travelled with the movement to the north and south of the country, had been looking for his18-year-old son, Jorge Mario Moreno, who was kidnapped along with five friends in 2010.
Moreno, who had publicly accused police officers of taking his son, had received death threats for his activism.
In a televised interview between members of the Peace Movement and Mexican President Felipe Calderon last month Moreno presented his son’s case and had asked for protection for him and his family.
At a protest in front of the government offices of Sonora in Mexico City on Monday night, members of the Peace Movement showed anger towards Calderon. “He promised that he would protect him and now Don Nepo is dead,” said a spokesperson for the Movement.
Members of the movement are further angered by the criminalization of Moreno following his death.
Jose Larrinaga Talamantes, spokesperson for the Sonora Attorney General’s Office said in a press conference on Tuesday that Moreno’s past and his links with organized crime were the most likely motive for the murder.
Moreno was acquitted of murder in 2010 after spending fours years in prison.
Peace Movement activists disagree dismissing the claims as “shameful.” Speaking at a press conference, Pietro Ameglio, a member of the movement said, “First he was accused of a crime that he didn’t commit, then they took his son, they murdered him and now they want to drag his name through the mud. It is a despicable tactic.”
Javier Sicilia has held the governor of Sonora responsible for Moreno’s death and members of the movement have called for the government of Sonora to resign. “If they are not able to protect their people then we call on them to step down,” said a spokesperson.
The movement is now demanding justice for Moreno they want his killers caught and Moreno’s family to be protected. There are also concerns for the safety of certain members of the movement.
Moreno is the second member of the movement to be killed. In October, Pedro Leiva Dominguez, from the indigenous town of Ostula was shot to death.
Speaking to Upside Down World, Ignacio Suárez Huape, a prominent member of the movement said, “We see his (Moreno) death as a threat against the movement. It is a threat against those who are looking for family members and a threat against the right to protest.”
At a press conference on Tuesday, members of the movement declared that the murders of Moreno and Leiva would not stop their demands for justice. “These cases are going to make us fight even harder,” they said.
“This pain will not make us give up, not stop us speaking out because now that they have taken a person from us we are more united than ever,” said one women.
Soledad Marina Carreón, whose son París Jesús Carreón Baltazar was killed last year, told Upside Down World that this latest death would not stop her search for justice. “I do not allow myself to feel afraid,” she said. “Fear means that I will no longer be able to shout and demand justice for the death of my son.”
“This is a sign that I have to keep looking for those who killed my son,” she continued.
Friends and fellow members paid tribute to Moreno on Tuesday. They spoke of his dedication to the movement and how he helped others from the state of Sonora to speak out against injustice. “He was a fighter for human rights,” said Amegilio. “Because of him others from Sonora felt they could come forward and join the search for justice.”
“The bullets that he received on Monday were the answer to the love he showed for his son,” he said.