Christians in Mexico facing battle to defend their faith
Christian families in Mexico are having a really hard time. They are now facing a strong battle to defend and keep their faith as the government is forcing them to sign illegal agreements, renouncing their right to hold religious services.
If they refuse to such a proposal, they are at risk of losing access to water and other essential services that the government provides them.
According to some sources of information, two Protestant families who signed such an agreement were informed on 22nd August that they risk being cut off again if they cannot pay the remainder of a huge fine that was part of the agreement.
The two families from La Mesa Limantitla village in Hidalgo State had refused to sign a similar document renouncing their faith in January last year while eight other Protestant families in the village were forced to.
As they refused to do so, the government cut off their access to water, drainage, and benefit programs the two families for over a year. Now, these families had the government benefit again because they decided to sign the agreement in January this year.
According to Campaign group Christian Solidarity Worldwide, freedom of religion violations are common in the Huasteca region of Hidalgo. In this indigenous area, they face denial of access to water and electricity, blocking religious minority children from attending school, arbitrary detention and forced displacement.
Mexican law gives indigenous communities the right to protect their culture and maintain traditional governing structures as long as human rights, including freedom of religion, are respected. However, a lack of understanding and government inaction leads to high incidences of rights violations.
CSW’s chief executive Mervyn Thomas said: “We are deeply troubled by the government’s inaction in the Huasteca region and the persistent violations of the right to freedom of religion or belief.
“We call on the Hidalgo State Governor, Omar Fayad Meneses, to address the injustices against these families without delay, and to ensure that officials in his administration uphold rule of law. We also call on both federal and state governments in Mexico to uphold the right to freedom of religion or belief and to ensure just outcomes for all religious minority communities experiencing violations on account of their religious beliefs.”
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