The prosecution of Michoacan state – located in western Mexico – has reported that he has located the body of Homero Gómez González, a recognized environmental activist dedicated to the protection of monarch butterflies, whose survival is threatened by the destruction of its forested environment, in whose defense Gómez González also worked. The activist had disappeared since January 13 in the Michoacan municipality of Ocampo, where he carried out his environmental conservation work and denounced groups dedicated to illegal logging of forests in this region of the country, rich in natural resources. The body of the activist has been transferred this Wednesday to the premises of the local Forensic Medical Service so that forensic examinations are performed to determine the causes of his death. Michoacán is also one of the states most hit by violence in Mexico, where bloody fighting between self-defense groups and the bloodthirsty Jalisco Nueva Generación Cartel are recorded.
The prosecution said on January 20 that they conducted interviews with 53 police officers in the framework of the investigation to determine the whereabouts of the activist, although they did not offer more information about the outcome of these investigations. Meanwhile, relatives of Gómez González said they had received three calls from extortionists demanding money in exchange for delivering the activist. Silvano Aureoles, governor of Michoacán, said Monday that the environmentalist’s family gave money to what he called “false kidnappers,” although he did not report the amount delivered.
The State Commission of Human Rights (ECHR) of Michoacán demanded in mid-January from the local authorities that, in addition to clarifying the disappearance of Gómez González, they did not rule out in their investigation “the line linked to the defense work carried out”. Mayte Cardona, spokeswoman for that organization, assured the Reuters agency that the Mexican activist “was surely affecting the interests of people who are illegally cutting down in the area.” The State of Michoacán has 30% of its forest-covered territory, an important resource for those engaged in illegal logging, activists in the region warned.
Local media reported that Gomez Gonzalez was last seen on January 13 in the town of El Soldado, in the municipality of Ocampo, where he was moving to carry out his environmental protection work, mainly from the sanctuaries that house the monarch butterfly, located in the east of Michoacán. In the search tasks inside the sanctuaries of the Monarch Butterfly, which lasted two weeks, officials of the prosecution specialized in search of people, civil protection officers, state police, experts of the local anti-kidnapping unit participated.
Gómez González, 50, was president of the Administrative Committee of the El Rosario Sanctuary, one of the main shelters of the biosphere reserve that is home to the monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus), which every year star in an impressive migration: They travel more than 4,000 kilometers from Canada, where they come from, through the United States to reach the forests of Michoacán, where they spend five months. A natural spectacle that begins in March and year after year attracts hundreds of tourists. In one of the last videos posted on his Twitter account on January 12 – a day before disappearing – Gómez González invited Mexicans to attend the sanctuary to see the wonder that represents the flight of the butterflies he loved. “They are the brides of the sun, the soul of the dead. Simply heritage of humanity,” said the environmentalist. “It’s a wonderful day,” he said in another video, “the butterfly flies and flies down the path. They look for water and also flowers. This is the largest and most beautiful sanctuary in the world.”
Mexico is one of the most dangerous countries in the world for activists, human rights defenders and journalists. The protection program for activists and communicators implemented by the federal government reported last year that 790 journalists and human rights defenders are under threat in this country for doing their job. Mexico City and the States of Veracruz and Guerrero concentrate the majority of protection cases. With nine homicides in 2018Mexico has been identified for the second consecutive year as the most dangerous nation in peace for the press according to Reporters Without Borders. The violence has surpassed the authorities, who have not been able to stop it: last year 35,000 homicides were registered, becoming the most violent year in the recent history of Mexico. During the first year of the six-year term of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, 10 journalists and 12 activists were killed.
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