The United Nations on Tuesday expressed concern about the safety of human rights workers in Mexico, after two indigenous leaders were confirmed killed over the weekend.
In a communique, the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCHR) in Mexico expressed "worry due to the vulnerable conditions of the human rights defenders in their work (in Mexico)."
The UNHCHR made specific reference to the regions of Costa Chica, Costa Grande and Montana in southern Mexico's impoverished state of Guerrero, where a large indigenous population lives, Xinhua reported.
Raul Lucas Lucia and Manuel Ponce Rosas, two leaders of the ethnic group Mixteco and active fighters for human rights in their communities, were detained on Feb. 13 by men identifying themselves as policemen.
Their bodies were found last weekend in a town in Guerrero, both bearing marks of torture.
The UNHCHR has called for a thorough investigation into the case and punishment for those responsible.