Alberto Patishtán Gómez, indigenous rights activist, dies

Alberto Patishtán Gómez, a Tsotsil professor and prominent indigenous rights advocate, has passed away in Mexico City due to an illness.

Patishtán gained international recognition after spending 13 years in prison for a crime he did not commit. Originally sentenced to 60 years for the 2000 murder of seven state police officers in El Bosque, Chiapas, he was eventually granted a presidential pardon by Enrique Peña Nieto in 2013. His release followed extensive national and international campaigns highlighting the grave violations of his judicial rights.

During his incarceration, Patishtán was a founding member and spokesperson for ‘La Voz de El Amate’, an organization established in 2006 to denounce torture, corruption, and discrimination against indigenous prisoners in the El Amate penitentiary.