Mexican Protestants left without water after refusing to fund Roman Catholic festivity

The local authorities of the San Jose neighbourhood in the city of Teopisca, in the state of Chiapas, Mexico, have cut off water to a group of evangelicals, for refusing to fund the Roman Catholic patron saint festivity. 

The first week of April, weeks after the celebrations, the local authorities, along with those in charge of the festivities, went to the evangelicals' houses. They demanded them to pay, and threatened them with cutting off their supplies if they refuse to cooperate.

The family Maranatha Church's pastor, Octavio Gomez, and four other families refused to pay the 200 pesos quota. The local authorities kept their threat, leaving them without water supply.

Around other 80 families paid to avoid the cutting of water, because the threat included a fine of 4,000 pesos more to reinstall it.

Meanwhile, twenty-seven familiesalso in the state of Chiapas will have their access to water and electricity restored after two years, because local authorities agreed to respect religious freedom in the village of Unión Juárez, Trinitaria Municipality.

The families, all Protestants, have been living without access to clean water or electricity since February 2014 for the same reason.

Despite state and federal officials being notified of these illegal acts, the Mexican government continues to ignore pleas from Protestant villagers to enforce laws protecting their freedom of worship.

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