Homero Gomez, administrator of the biggest butterfly sanctuary in the western state of Michoacan.
(Photo Santuario de la Mariposa Monarca el Rosario/Facebook)
Jan 21, 2020
Concerns for the safety of monarch butterfly defender Homero Gomez lingered Wednesday, more than a week after the Mexican environmentalist went missing.
Gomez, the administrator of the biggest butterfly sanctuary in the western state of Michoacan, El Rosario, disappeared January 13. In a tweet from Jan. 12, Gomez, surrounded by monarchs, encourages people to come visit "this wonder of nature." His last posts on social media are from January 13.
\u201cEn el Santuario El Rosario Ocampo Michoacan \u201c El m\u00e1s grande del mundo \u201c\u201d— Homero gomez g. (@Homero gomez g.) 1578862606
The lightheartedness of the image belies the threats that came with his work to keep the butterflies' forest habitat intact.
Mayte Cardona, spokesperson for the Human Rights State Commission of Michoacan, told Reuters, "He was probably hurting the (business) interests of people illegally logging in the area."
"Relatives of Mr. Gomez told local media that the conservationist had received threats from an organized crime gang," BBC News reported Wednesday.
Michoacan, as Reuters previously reported, is a state "long convulsed by turf wars between drug gangs." The Los Angeles Times also reported in November:
Mexico's multibillion-dollar avocado industry, headquartered in Michoacan state, has become a prime target for cartels, which have been seizing farms and clearing protected woodlands to plant their own groves of what locals call "green gold."
An investigation into Gomez's whereabouts is ongoing. Mexico City's La Jornada reported Tuesday that authorities detained 53 local police officers over a suspected connection to Gomez's disappearance.
Global Witness, in its latest annual report, said Mexico was sixth deadliest country and Latin America the deadliest region for environmental and land defenders.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, The U.S. is on a fast track to authoritarianism like nothing I've ever seen. Meanwhile, corporate news outlets are utterly capitulating to Trump, twisting their coverage to avoid drawing his ire while lining up to stuff cash in his pockets. That's why I believe that Common Dreams is doing the best and most consequential reporting that we've ever done. Our small but mighty team is a progressive reporting powerhouse, covering the news every day that the corporate media never will. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. And to ignite change for the common good. Now here's the key piece that I want all our readers to understand: None of this would be possible without your financial support. That's not just some fundraising cliche. It's the absolute and literal truth. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. Our Summer Campaign is now underway, and there’s never been a more urgent time for Common Dreams to be as vigilant as possible. Will you donate now to help power the nonprofit, independent reporting of Common Dreams? Thank you for being a vital member of our community. Together, we can keep independent journalism alive when it’s needed most. - Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
butterfly sanctuary mexicoenvironmentglobal witnesshomero gómez gonzálezhuman rightsmexicomonarch butterflies
Concerns for the safety of monarch butterfly defender Homero Gomez lingered Wednesday, more than a week after the Mexican environmentalist went missing.
Gomez, the administrator of the biggest butterfly sanctuary in the western state of Michoacan, El Rosario, disappeared January 13. In a tweet from Jan. 12, Gomez, surrounded by monarchs, encourages people to come visit "this wonder of nature." His last posts on social media are from January 13.
\u201cEn el Santuario El Rosario Ocampo Michoacan \u201c El m\u00e1s grande del mundo \u201c\u201d— Homero gomez g. (@Homero gomez g.) 1578862606
The lightheartedness of the image belies the threats that came with his work to keep the butterflies' forest habitat intact.
Mayte Cardona, spokesperson for the Human Rights State Commission of Michoacan, told Reuters, "He was probably hurting the (business) interests of people illegally logging in the area."
"Relatives of Mr. Gomez told local media that the conservationist had received threats from an organized crime gang," BBC News reported Wednesday.
Michoacan, as Reuters previously reported, is a state "long convulsed by turf wars between drug gangs." The Los Angeles Times also reported in November:
Mexico's multibillion-dollar avocado industry, headquartered in Michoacan state, has become a prime target for cartels, which have been seizing farms and clearing protected woodlands to plant their own groves of what locals call "green gold."
An investigation into Gomez's whereabouts is ongoing. Mexico City's La Jornada reported Tuesday that authorities detained 53 local police officers over a suspected connection to Gomez's disappearance.
Global Witness, in its latest annual report, said Mexico was sixth deadliest country and Latin America the deadliest region for environmental and land defenders.
Concerns for the safety of monarch butterfly defender Homero Gomez lingered Wednesday, more than a week after the Mexican environmentalist went missing.
Gomez, the administrator of the biggest butterfly sanctuary in the western state of Michoacan, El Rosario, disappeared January 13. In a tweet from Jan. 12, Gomez, surrounded by monarchs, encourages people to come visit "this wonder of nature." His last posts on social media are from January 13.
\u201cEn el Santuario El Rosario Ocampo Michoacan \u201c El m\u00e1s grande del mundo \u201c\u201d— Homero gomez g. (@Homero gomez g.) 1578862606
The lightheartedness of the image belies the threats that came with his work to keep the butterflies' forest habitat intact.
Mayte Cardona, spokesperson for the Human Rights State Commission of Michoacan, told Reuters, "He was probably hurting the (business) interests of people illegally logging in the area."
"Relatives of Mr. Gomez told local media that the conservationist had received threats from an organized crime gang," BBC News reported Wednesday.
Michoacan, as Reuters previously reported, is a state "long convulsed by turf wars between drug gangs." The Los Angeles Times also reported in November:
Mexico's multibillion-dollar avocado industry, headquartered in Michoacan state, has become a prime target for cartels, which have been seizing farms and clearing protected woodlands to plant their own groves of what locals call "green gold."
An investigation into Gomez's whereabouts is ongoing. Mexico City's La Jornada reported Tuesday that authorities detained 53 local police officers over a suspected connection to Gomez's disappearance.
Global Witness, in its latest annual report, said Mexico was sixth deadliest country and Latin America the deadliest region for environmental and land defenders.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.