Activists in Mexico are calling out the kidnapping of more than 100 farmers in the cartel-controlled state of Guerrero. Activists claim that La Familia Michoacana is holding the victims as a way to pressure locals into letting them establish a base of operations in the region.
In a streamed interview, Catholic Father Filiberto Velazquez — director of the Minerva Bello Center for the Rights of Victims of Violence — exposed the kidnapping and revealed that the terrorist cartel has managed to stay one step ahead of any security operations carried out by Mexico’s government.
While details of the mass kidnappings remain unclear, the issue came to light in recent days when local farmers in Guerrero began holding protests asking for the release of seven farmers who had been taken and held captive for 23 days by cartel gunmen. The protests prompted Mexico’s government to act, sending out a series of search parties led by military forces. After several days of pressure, the criminal organization released six of the seven kidnapped victims.
