July 16—The National Front To Save the Mexican Countryside (FNRCM), the independent farmers movement leading the fight to protect Mexican agriculture from the global cartels and speculators, has called for a full investigation into the assassination of José Ramírez Yáñez, the coordinator of the FNRCM’s activities in the state of Jalisco. According to the local prosecutor’s office, Ramírez Yáñez’s son found his father on July 8, lying in a pond or a lake in Gómez Farías, Jalisco, his body showing visible signs of violence.

“We … speak out with deep indignation and grief over the cowardly murder of our comrade, friend, and state coordinator in Jalisco,” the FNRCM wrote in a statement issued the same day. “We cannot, and will not, allow silence to be the response to the violence that took the life of a man who dedicated decades to the struggle for the dignity of our land and those who work it.” The full text of the FNRCM statement follows this article; the accompanying box provides excerpts of a joint letter from a number of farm leaders in the United States.

José Ramírez Yáñez was mayor from 1992-1995 of the municipality of Gómez Farías, in southern Jalisco, one of the top corn-producing states in Mexico. He played a national role in fighting to prevent the enactment of NAFTA—understanding its destructive intent for Mexico and all North America—and he continued to lead his fellow citizens to back policies in the public interest of his state and nation. After the formation of the FNRCM in 2024, he played a leading role. Statements of appreciation for the contributions of Ramírez Yáñez, and condolences to his family, have come from the government of Gómez Farías, and from other agencies and public figures. He was 69 years old.

The FNRCM makes clear that they take his murder as a message directed at the farm movement as a whole. His death “is a direct attack on the social struggle and the defense of the Mexican countryside that he courageously led…. We will not let our guard down. José’s memory deserves not only respect, but also truth and justice. If they [his assassins] touch one of us, they touch all of us who work the land and fight for social justice,” they wrote.

The United Farmers movement of Sinaloa, headed by FNRCM leader Baltazar Valdes Armentia, added its own statement on the murder of Ramírez Yáñez to that of the FNRCM, honoring their fallen comrade who “dedicated decades of his life to defending the dignity of those of us who work the land. His struggle to save national agriculture from the clutches of international speculation, his demand for fair guaranteed prices based on actual production costs, and his defense of rural families’ livelihoods are causes we share—and which are more relevant today than ever.

“We view this brutal act of violence as a message of intimidation directed at all of us who defend the Mexican countryside. However, those who believe that violence will silence the just demands of producers are mistaken,” the United Farmers promised.

EIR has followed the FNRCM since its founding, and reported on its campaign to free Mexico from the grip of the Chicago Board of Trade and international speculators who have deliberately imposed policies on Mexico designed to bankrupt its independent farmers and thereby make the nation’s entire food supply subject to their whims.

Through repeated nationwide protests, combined with forums and briefings to government officials and the public alike, the FNRCM has placed the needed alternative policy on the national agenda: a return to a policy of protecting the national farmers and the national food supply, through such policies as guaranteed parity prices for farmers’ produce, based on national production costs; reestablishment of the national rural bank to provide credit, and others. Various members of the FNRCM leadership have also reported on this important fight for development at the weekly meetings of the International Peace Coalition. They insist that a new “national agriculture” policy be restored in Mexico, to serve the public good.

Statement Issued July 8, 2026 by the FNRCM on the Murder of José Ramírez Yáñez

From the National Front To Save the Mexican Countryside (FNRCM), we raise our voices with deep indignation and pain at the cowardly murder of our colleague, friend and state coordinator in Jalisco, José Ramírez Yáñez.

We cannot, and will not, allow silence to be the response to the violence that took the life of a man who dedicated decades to the fight for the dignity of our land and those who work it.

His death is not just another statistic; it is a direct attack on the social struggle and the defense of the Mexican countryside that he bravely led.

We Demand from the Authorities:

• The immediate and complete clarification of the events that led to his death.

• That the corresponding investigations be carried out with total transparency, without omissions or delays that favor impunity.

• Let justice be done and let those materially and intellectually responsible for this crime be punished to the full extent of the law.

The powerlessness we feel today is being transformed into organized strength. We will not let our guard down.

José’s memory deserves not only respect, it deserves truth and justice. If they touch one of us, they touch all of us who work the land and fight for social justice.

No more impunity! We want justice for José Ramírez Yáñez!