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Al Congreso Nacional Indígena
A los medios de comunicación
A las organizaciones sociales
A los pueblos indígenas de México y el mundo
A la opinión pública
Al pueblo istmeño

La Asamblea de Pueblos Indígenas del Istmo en Defensa de la Tierra y el Territorio manifiesta su repudio a las agresiones realizadas contra integrantes de la Asamblea General de Pueblo de San Dionisio del Mar por pistoleros a cargo de la actual presidenta municipal Teresita de Jesús el pasado 29 marzo, al atacar a balazos a compañeros de la Asamblea de San Dionisio del Mar, durante la celebración de las festividades del Judío, resultando de ese ataque 5 compañeros heridos, estos actos se inscriben en una escalada de agresiones contra los defensores y defensoras del territorio en nuestro Estado.

Asimismo, manifestamos nuestro apoyo a la Asamblea del Pueblo de San Dionisio del Mar quienes desde hace varios años han estado desarrollando y acompañando conjuntamente con otros pueblos de la región, una fuerte lucha contra el despojo de nuestro territorio para la imposición de los proyectos eólicos, especialmente el proyecto de Mareña Renovables. Sabemos que esta agresión se enmarca en una ofensiva del estado contra las comunidades indígenas para imponer sus proyectos de despojo y muerte.

(Continuar leyendo…)

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(Continuar leyendo…)

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EXIGIMOS LA INMEDIATA LIBERTAD DEL COMPAÑERO FIDENCIO ALDAMA PÉREZ DE LA TRIBU YAQUI

 A la tribu Yaqui
Al pueblo de México
A los medios de comunicación

En el Concejo Indígena de Gobierno y el Congreso Nacional Indígena nos mantenemos atentos a la determinación del Juzgado de Oralidad Penal del Distrito Judicial de Cd. Obregón, en cuyas manos está la libertad de nuestro compañero Fidencio Aldama Pérez,  de la tribu Yaqui en Loma de Bácum. El día de mañana 21 de marzo de 2018, dicho juzgado emitirá una resolución sobre el expediente mediante el cual se ha querido acusar, sin fundamentos, a nuestro compañero por delitos inexistentes.

Esos supuestos delitos se derivan del ataque que sufrió Loma de Bácum el día 21 de octubre de 2016, en que un grupo de personas simpatizantes de la instalación de gaseoductos en el territorio Yaqui, intentaron tomar por asalto el recinto tradicional de Loma de Bácum para imponer sus proyectos.

No estamos dispuestos a acostumbrarnos a ser nosotros los delincuentes y los encarcelados, cuando son los malos gobiernos y los empresarios los que cometen todo tipo de crímenes en nuestra contra y por lo tanto exigimos la libertad inmediata de nuestro compañero Fidencio Aldama Pérez y deploramos que sea criminalizada la decisión autónoma y constitucional de la comunidad de Loma de Bácum en la Tribu Yaqui, de impedir la entrada de megaproyectos que contaminan, destruyen, privatizan y despojan a nuestros pueblos

ATENTAMENTE

Marzo de 2018
Nunca mas un México sin Nosotros
Congreso Nacional Indígena
Concejo Indígena de Gobierno

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Sorry, this entry is only available in Mexican Spanish. For the sake of viewer convenience, the content is shown below in the alternative language. You may click the link to switch the active language.

Sorry, this entry is only available in Mexican Spanish. For the sake of viewer convenience, the content is shown below in the alternative language. You may click the link to switch the active language.

Convocation for the Next Step in our Struggle

Sisters and brothers, compañeras and compañeros of the countryside and the city, in Mexico and around the world:

The National Indigenous Congress (CNI), the Indigenous Governing Council (CIG), the Civil Association “The Time for the Flourishing of Our Peoples Has Come,” and the Zapatista Army for National Liberation here address those individuals, groups, collectives, organizations, peoples, barrios, tribes, and nations that, in Mexico and in other countries, took on as their own the initiative to register the CIG spokeswoman, María de Jesús Patricio Martínez, as candidate for the Mexican presidency.

The information that we have been able to verify is the following:

• Signatures received by the National Electoral Institute (INE): 281,955. Of these, 10,624 were registered on paper, rather than via the digital application. Of those paper registrations, the vast majority came from community assemblies.
• According to the INE’s own criteria, 94.5% of the signatures collected were found to be valid.
• Auxiliaries: 14,117 people registered as auxiliaries, with 5,704 actively registering signatures. With respect to the difference between registered and active auxiliaries (8,413), of 5,322 emails that were sent to those who registered as auxiliaries but did not document any signatures, there were 2,137 replies. Of those replies, 1,618 explained that they did not have an adequate mobile device with which to gather signatures, either because of the requirements of the INE application or because of the quality of the camera on their device.
• Average number of signatures per active auxiliary: 49.43 (information from the webpage of our brothers and sisters at Cryptopozol, who processed this information from November 3, 2017, through February 24-26, 2018. See: https://criptopozol.github.io/avance_marichuy/
• The following is an approximate (but not precise) count of auxiliaries by state:

Location not listed        4930

Aguascalientes             89

Baja California              251

Baja California Sur        69

Campeche                    42

Chiapas                        864

Chihuahua                    188

Mexico City                 3398

Coahuila                       92

Colima                          30

Durango                       42

Mexico State                1070

Outside Mexico            105

Guanajuato                  345

Guerrero                       99

Hidalgo                         179

Jalisco                          1040

Michoacán                    264

Morelos                        274

Nayarit                          63

Nuevo León                  257

Oaxaca                         242

Puebla                          407

Querétaro                     301

Quintana Roo               189

San Luis Potosí             197

Sinaloa                          98

Sonora                          149

Tabasco                        48

Tamaulipas                   69

Tlaxcala                        94

Veracruz                       367

Yucatán                       151

Zacatecas                    89

(Note: the final count does not match the registered auxiliaries because, we are told, some auxiliaries registered more than once out of desperation because the INE did not respond in a timely manner).

-*-

Compañeras and compañeros, sisters and brothers:

As is evident, we did not reach the necessary number of signatures to register Marichuy as a presidential candidate.

We think explanations for and evaluations of this fact should stem from a serious and rigorous analysis.

Had we reached the number of signatures necessary we would have been able to take advantage of this space to continue to reveal the suffering and struggle of the originary peoples and to point to the criminal character of the system, as well as to echo the pain and rage that seethes across the entire national territory and to continue to promote self-organization, resistance, and rebellion.

We did not reach that goal, but we must continue on our path, seeking out other ways, methods and forms with ingenuity, creativity, and boldness to achieve what it is that we want.

Our purpose was never to take Power, but was and will be for self-organization, autonomy, rebellion and resistance, for solidarity and mutual aid and for the construction of a world built on democracy, freedom, and justice for all.

The National Indigenous Congress’ initiative to form the Indigenous Governing Council and run its spokeswoman, Marichuy, as candidate for the Mexican presidency has completed another stage. The first stage was marked by the decision made during the Fifth National Indigenous Congress on our twentieth anniversary in October of 2016 to hold a referendum on this initiative among all of our peoples and communities. The second stage consisted of the CNI’s internal referendum from October through December of 2016 on whether to form the CIG and name its spokeswoman. The third stage culminated in the Constitutive Assembly of the CIG and the naming of María de Jesús Patricio Martínez, by consensus of that Assembly, in May of 2017. The fourth stage consisted of the collection of signatures for Marichuy’s presidential bid, a process that we have just concluded.

Our path continues. The fundamental difference between the current moment and the previous stages is that there are now many more originary peoples walking together with us, and, MOST IMPORTANTLY, that there are many more people, groups, collectives, and organizations focused on finding our own solutions, solutions that we know will never come from above.

This last stage was marked by the involvement of many more people and sectors, beyond the originary peoples and the CNI, in a civil, peaceful, and inclusive struggle for a just cause using legal, legitimate, and honest methods toward a horizon of the radical transformation of the reality we all suffer today. This is something that no member of the institutional political class can say.

Faced with the undeniable fact that we did not reach the number of signatures required by law to continue this stage, we call for an analysis and evaluation that, like the entire process so far, is collective, participative, inclusive, honest, and true.

For these reasons, and for others for which we have no words:

First: We thank with all our hearts the people who, in Mexico and in other countries, gave their signatures. For us, each of them is an embrace and encouragement to continue on without fail. We salute each and every one of them and, in response, reaffirm our commitment to not falter on this path.

Second: We offer special thanks to those who, with or without the label of “auxiliaries,” understood the reach of our initiative and made it their own, offering their time, resources and labor in the process of creating, growing, and consolidating collective and communitarian organization in order to be able to confront in better conditions the storm that we are all living through.

Third: The Civil Association “The Time for the Flourishing of Our Peoples Has Come,” the National Indigenous Congress and all who constitute it, the Indigenous Governing Council, and the Zapatista Army for National Liberation have begun a serious internal analysis and evaluation of the stage which has just concluded.

Fourth: We think this analysis is not just up to us. We believe that, given the collective effort put into this initiative which far surpassed the horizon of the originary peoples, we want to consolidate and maintain this broader desire to build another way of doing politics.

Thus, we convoke:

All those individuals, groups, collectives, organizations, nations, tribes, peoples, and communities of the countryside and the city, indigenous and non-indigenous, in Mexico and in other countries, who committed themselves to this process and took it on with work, dedication, and honesty: we invite you carry out an analysis and evaluation of this effort using the objectives announced by the CNI and the CIG and above all, the objectives you yourselves established, and to send it to us at the following email:

valoraciones@congresonacionalindigena.org

We would also like to announce that, parallel to these analyses and evaluations, the Civil Association “The Time for the Flourishing of Our Peoples Has Come,” the National Indigenous Congress, the CIG, and our Zapatista brothers and sisters will convoke a series of public activities open to all those who participated in the process in order to follow through with this struggle that, as we know, has only just begun. These activities will be announced by the convoking bodies.

We also invite you to hold your own activities for analysis and evaluation of what is happening in Mexico and around the world according to your own ways, times, and criteria. As the CIG and its spokeswoman Marichuy have said time and again, the horizon of our struggle is not marked by July 1, 2018, nor does it apply only to Mexico.

Resistance, rebellion, and the endeavor to build a world where many worlds fit is an international one and is not limited by the calendars or geographies of those above who exploit, disrespect, rob, and destroy us.

Mexico, March 2018.

NEVER AGAIN A MEXICO WITHOUT US

NEVER AGAIN A WORLD OF DEATH AND DESTRUCTION

NATIONAL INDIGENOUS CONGRESS

INDIGENOUS GOVERNING COUNCIL

CIVIL ASSOCIATION “THE TIME FOR THE FLOURISHING OF OUR PEOPLES HAS COME”

ZAPATISTA ARMY FOR NATIONAL LIBERATION

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Video de condolencias para la familia de la compañera fallecida en el accidente de la caravana del Concejo Indígena de Gobierno, en su trayecto por Baja California. Grabado en ceremonias por su memoria en Baja California y Ciudad de México.

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María de Jesús Patricio no obtuvo el registro como candidata independiente a la presidencia de México. Sin embargo, la causa a favor de grupos minoritarios y contra la discriminación seguirá su camino para cambiar el país.

Por Juan Villoro | NY Times

CIUDAD DE MÉXICO — El 14 de febrero una camioneta recorría el desierto de Vizcaíno en Baja California Sur. Daban las 3:30 de la tarde, después del almuerzo, bajo un calor intenso, en la Carretera Federal 1, que carece de curvas y adormece peligrosamente. Todo conspiraba a favor del riesgo, pero la caravana no podía detenerse.

En octubre de 2017, la indígena María de Jesús Patricio, conocida como Marichuy, inició su campaña para convertirse en candidata independiente a la presidencia, respaldada por el Concejo Indígena de Gobierno. Durante cuatro meses visitó los más diversos rincones del país para escuchar a sesenta etnias que carecen de representación en la política mexicana. Se suele pensar que los indígenas representan un bloque monolítico, con idénticas costumbres y creencias; en realidad, se trata de un mosaico multicultural que responde a realidades y proyectos diferentes. Para obtener la candidatura, Marichuy debía lograr antes algo más difícil: unir a las comunidades en objetivos comunes.

El jueves 14 avanzaba en las precarias condiciones que la acompañaron en todos los caminos. Si los políticos viajan en aviones y camionetas blindadas, Marichuy se sometía a trayectos extenuantes y se adentraba en regiones inhóspitas (el 20 de enero el coche de prensa que la acompañaba fue asaltado en Michoacán por una banda del crimen organizado). A cinco días de que venciera el plazo para lograr el registro como candidata independiente, la vocera hacía proselitismo en una de las regiones menos pobladas del país. No apostaba por el pragmatismo electorero, sino por acercarse a los más apartados.

Bajo el denso sol de la tarde, la camioneta abandonó la carretera y volcó en la tierra donde crecen los huizaches. En el accidente murió Eloísa Vega Castro, de la red de apoyo a los pueblos indígenas. Varios tripulantes quedaron heridos y Marichuy sufrió la fractura de un brazo y tuvo que ser operada. Pasaron cerca de doce horas hasta que los heridos llegaron al Hospital Juan María de Salvatierra, en La Paz.

El 15 de febrero la candidata indígena acaparó las portadas de todos los periódicos. Un impacto de muerte recibió la atención que no se le había prestado a sus ideas.

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Fueron casi 130 días observando la caravana del Concejo Indígena de Gobierno y Marichuy, su vocera. Esta banda ha viajado en una furgoneta con recursos mínimos y condiciones precarias por más de 120 lugares en todas las regiones de México, para cumplir una agenda que no era de comicio pero que pretendía atender una demanda de presencia en las comunidades, fomentar la organización y coser la unión de los pueblos (originarios o no) por la vida. El proceso mostró las incompatibilidades y desniveles entre los modelos de representación del sistema de los que están en el poder y los independientes de verdad. El logro de las firmas para constar en la cédula electoral era una buena estrategia para dar visibilidad a las causas y problemas de los pueblos indígenas, pero éste no era el único objetivo: las dificultades encontradas durante el recorrido también revelaron y aproximaron ideas y personas.

Banda sonora:
“Verte regresar” por Belafonte Sensacional y Paulina Lasa (devueltaacasa.org)

“Mujer con corazón” o “La cumbia de Marichuy” por Los Originales de San Andrés

Vídeo y fotografias por André Mantelli