Calakmul’s communities are granted a provisional suspension for the “Tren Maya” Project
During the last days of January it was announced through a press conference that the native communities Maya Peninsular and Cho’l, who are settled in Xpujil, Calakmul, Campeche, and part of the Xpujil’s Regional Indigenous and Popular Council (CRIPX), were given a provisional suspension from the Tren Maya’s project execution.
The request for legal protection presented by the communities is based upon the fact that the indigenous consultation was a “simulated and duplicitous attempt ordered by the Federal Executive and carried out in detriment of the indigenous communities of Campeche, Yucatán, Quintana Roo, Tabasco and Chiapas.” It is also argued that the “illegal deliberation and approval of the project named Tren Maya was done under overt violation to our human right to be guaranteed a previous, free, informed, sincere and culturally adequate query”.
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Denunciation against the murders of environmental activists
We joined the protests for the murders of Homero Gómez González and Raúl Hernández Romero, both environmental activists who in several occasions had denounced illegal logging inside the Monarch butterfly’s habitat in the state of Michoacán.
México has become one of the most dangerous places for the protection of both human and environmental rights due to the strong presence of organized crime as well as a consequence stemming from the imposition of projects which damage several communities.
Because of this, we demand the authorities to delve into these situations and that the Michoacán’s State Attorney General undergoes an investigation regarding the murders. Moreover, we call upon the local government to acknowledge the efforts done by human rights activists, and to create the proper conditions so that they may continue on with their labour in a safe and suitable environment.
Through the Unit for the Defense of Human Rights we call on the Undersecretary of Human Rights to consolidate an interinstitutional work group, alongside the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT) and the cooperation of human rights’ defenders, that encompasses all the levels of the government as well as the three branches of public power.
Lastly, we request the Senate of the Republic to ratify the Regional Agreement about Access to Information, Public Participation and Access to Justice in Environmental Affairs in Latin America and the Caribbean, better known as Escazú Agreement. This upholding would amount to an important development in the defense of the environment.
Calling to use clean energies in Baja California Sur
Baja California Sur (BCS) faces an energetic crisis that has provoked blackouts throughout the state. In response, several organizations of the civil society urge the Federal Electricity Comission (CFE) and the local government to prioritize the development of projects regarding clean energy generation so that the human right to a healthy environment can be guaranteed.
We also request the authorities to respect the environmental standard and the human rights of the communities where energy generation projects are to be installed.
Reveal and start of the Laboratory for the Resolution of Socio-environmental Conflicts
On February 5th the Laboratory for the Resolution of Socio-environmental Conflicts, designed by the Mexican Center of Environmental Rights (CEMDA), Universidad Iberoamericana Ciudad de México’s Transdisciplinary University Center for Sustainability (CENTRUS) and the Specialist Center in Environmental Management (CEGAM), was presented.
The press conference was attended by CENTRUS director José Alberto Lara Pulido, PhD; CENTRUS’ teachers and investigators Alejandro Guevara Sanginés, PhD. Adriana Flores Díaz, PhD; CEGAM’s director Cuauhtémoc León-Diez, PhD and CEMDA’s human rights coordinator Andrea Cerami.
Andrea Cerami pointed out that the civil society’s organizations involved in the laboratory’s evolution “have developed studies which have determined […] the factors which cause these environmental conflicts.” Among the factors, he stated, “we can identify the socio-economical difference that is evident between different sectors of the country alongside the unfathomable use of natural resources and the unsustainable use of the ecosystems.”
On February 12th the laboratory officially started. Regarding this, CEMDA’s director Gustavo Alanís stated that the project had been growing throughout the course of a year so that it may offer spaces for discussion, approachability and peace construction regarding environmental matters.