In previous reports, we ve explained how the Mexican government used the
tragic murder of an 11-year-old boy this past December 13 as a pretext for a
Public Security Police raid two days later on Union Progreso, an indigenous
community allied with the opposition Zapatistas. Though the
entire community of 170 insists they've done nothing wrong, and even the lone
government supporter, Guadalupe Gomez, says no one from the community was
responsible for the ambush, all but Gomez and his family fled to the hills for
six days to avoid the oncoming invasion.

On June 10, in a similar raid, seven community members were taken by the
armies --the local term to cover all the Government's multiple armed security
forces. Two are still imprisoned, and the remaining five were returned in
caskets with their corpses mutilated and rotting.

While we were visiting Union Progreso upon their return, a small incident
brought home to what degree the community continues to be traumatized by the
events of last summer.

The day after Christmas, two CPTers and another observer passed a mother and
daughter who were burning something in the grass beside the path. We asked
them what it was. We looked closer, noted that it was clothing, and asked why
they would be burning clothing. The daughter began to cry, and
explained that they had belonged to her brother, who had died recently.

Though the women continued crying, we were pressed to meet a contact, so we
left, feeling cold, awkward, and sad.

On the way we passed men who were chatting in front of the little grocery, and
told them what we'd seen. One of the men told us the dead man was his son,
that he had died last June 10. His wife and daughter were burning three or
four good pairs of pants. He seemed apologetic--was this normal to burn
good pants? But it was because of their sadness, he said, his daughter's
unbearable sadness each time the sight of her brother s clothing conjured up
the image of his dead body.

When we returned from our meeting, only embers remained, glowing in the grass
by the path.