On December 22, 1997, 45 members of a group of indigenous Tzotzil Catholics were killed in the Mexican village of Acteal while they were assembled for prayer. Of those killed 21 were women and 15 were children. While they supported the demands of the Zapatista rebels who were active in the area, the Bees as they were known, were a pacifist group and did not support armed struggle. They were killed by a paramilitary group believed to have been armed and trained by the Mexican government.
In 2020 the Mexican Government formally apologised to the people of Acteal and set up various mechanisms to compensate them.
Loving God,
as we remember the victims of struggles like the one in Mexico that led to this massacre, we pray especially for indigenous peoples who are still suffering from historical injustice and the damaging effects of how they were perceived and treated.
We ask that they may persevere and that we might learn from them how to live lightly on the earth.
Amen
By Fr Pat O'Shea - Lower Hutt
Monument at the site of the Massacre
Amen
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