The recent forced displacement and arbitrary arrest of evangelicals in Mexico highlight the ongoing reality of religious intolerance in many parts of the country.

Although these incidents have occurred in different states and in different local contexts, evangelical organisations and representatives warn of a recurring pattern of pressure, punishment and expulsion against those who do not submit to the religious practices imposed by traditional majorities.

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The most recent case was reported in Oaxaca, where an evangelical pastor and his family were expelled from their community after refusing to take part in a Roman Catholic ritual.

A pastor detained

An evangelical pastor and his family were forcibly displaced from the Santiago Malacatepec community in the San Juan Mazatlán municipality of Oaxaca state after he refused to participate in a religious ceremony contrary to his beliefs.

Prior to his expulsion, Pastor Mariano Velásquez Martínez was detained for five days without charge by community authorities.

He is the pastor of the Camino Nuevo y Vivo Church, a congregation of around 25 people, which he has served since 2023 when the previous pastor was also displaced for religious reasons.

In November 2025, the community authorities appointed him steward, a traditional role that involves organising and financing festivities for the majority religion.

The pastor accepted the position under the explicit agreement that his role would be limited to providing candles and flowers. However, on 15 January 2026, another steward ordered him to light candles, kneel, and pray before the image of St James the Apostle.

When he pointed out that this would violate his beliefs and was not part of the agreement, he was reported to the local authorities.

The community authorities ignored the agreed terms and detained the pastor for five days. He was then tied up with a rope and brought before an assembly of around 180 men, where his expulsion from the community was announced publicly.

He was forced to sign a document formalising his forced displacement under coercion and without receiving a copy, which makes him fear that it could be used to simulate a voluntary departure.

Currently, the pastor, his wife, and their three-month-old baby are temporarily staying with relatives in Oaxaca.

Calls to apply the law in Oaxaca

The case comes amid a tightening of the legal framework against forced internal displacement in Oaxaca. In September 2025, the State Congress passed the Law to Prevent, Address and Repair Forced Internal Displacement in the State, which includes prison sentences of between 10 and 18 years, as well as financial penalties.

Porfirio Flores Zúñiga, a lawyer and representative of the Fraternity of Pastors, publicly urged the Office of the Attorney General and the Ministry of the Interior of Oaxaca to apply this legislation to the case of Pastor Velásquez Martínez.

Meanwhile, Anna Lee Stangl, director of advocacy for the organisation CSW, described the events as 'inconceivable' and denounced the failure of the Mexican state to fulfil its human rights and religious freedom obligations. She urged the Oaxaca authorities to act urgently to determine who was responsible.

Arrests and reprisals in Chiapas

The expulsion of the pastor in Oaxaca is one of several recent cases of repression against evangelicals across the country.

In the state of Chiapas, eleven evangelicals were arrested and imprisoned in Pinar Salinas, in the municipality of Zinacantán, in the indigenous region of Los Altos, for refusing to cooperate in a festival organised by traditionalist Catholics.

According to Antonio Vázquez Méndez, the events took place at around 11:00 on Friday 16 January, when community authorities accompanied by a group of people broke into a private home where the eleven people were holding a family worship service. They were forcibly removed, beaten, and taken to the community jail, where they were held for two days.

The authorities demanded a fine of 100,000 pesos for their release.

After a several-hour meeting attended by municipal and state authorities, including the mayor of Zinacantán and the regional government delegate, it was agreed that they would be released without paying the fine. However, after their release, their homes were cut off from drinking water and electricity supplies.

Vázquez Méndez reported that this episode is part of a conflict that dates back to at least 2010 involving arrests, assaults, cuts to basic services, and threats against those who decided to change their faith.

He also stated that several evangelical families have been living without access to basic services or schooling for their children for almost four years, under threat of expulsion and death.

The evangelical representative stressed that the imposition of fines and arrests had no legal basis, and that despite attempts by community authorities to portray the conflict as unconnected to religion, the events occurred during a religious service, confirming that this was religious persecution.

30th in the World Watch List

Mexico is included in the World Watch List compiled by Open Doors, an organisation that advocates for religious freedom worldwide. The organisation's report studies persecution in each country.

"In indigenous communities, evangelical Christians suffer displacement, harassment, and loss of rights at the hands of local authorities who invoke so-called traditional 'customs and practices'", it states in its 2026 report, in which Mexico ranks 30th.